Homeowners who live near the Shinnecock Hills Golf Club will not be allowed to park cars on their lawns on their driveways or on their street frontage for a fee during the U.S. Open this month, Southampton Town says. Michael Wright reports on 27east.com that the Town of Southampton has already issued a cease-and-desist order to a Barkers Island Road homeowner who was advertising for paid U.S. Open parking spaces on his property with lawn signs and through internet posts.
Ryan Murphy, the town’s director of code enforcement, said that using a residential property for a profit-making venture constitutes an illegal change of use under the town’s zoning codes and that the town code officers will be doing patrols before and during the tournament, which runs from June 15-21, to enforce the ban.
Selling parking on residential properties near major events like this month’s U.S. Open, which is expected to draw nearly 20,000 people on the competition days, is a common sight nationwide.
But communities, and even event organizers themselves, have taken different stances toward the practice. Many communities allow it, either looking the other way at the legal status it creates or expressly passing temporary special permissions to allow residents to rake in extra income from a major draw.
Some events have forbidden it because of traffic safety concerns.
At past U.S. Opens at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, members of the Shinnecock Nation, who are not subject to the town’s zoning codes, have set up private parking lots on their individual properties along Montauk Highway, most even providing shuttles to the venue entrance at the other side of the Stony Brook Southampton college campus.
Lance Gumbs, the vice chairman of the nation’s Council of Trustees, said that he and other tribe members with streetfront properties will be offering private parking options, in addition to the VIP parking lots that the USGA has paid the tribe to host on their powwow grounds in the interior of the territory, from which USGA shuttles will ferry the spectators who pay the $84 per day, to the tournament entrance.
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Long Island’s Latino population grew more than 120% since the turn of the millennium, compared with about 12% in New York City, according to a report from the Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies at the CUNY Graduate Center.
Robert Brodsky reports in NEWSDAY that on Long Island, the Hispanic population grew 122% between 2000 and 2024, including a 143% increase in Suffolk County and a nearly 99% uptick in Nassau County, U.S. Census data shows.
The Dominican population has become the largest Latino contingent across both the metropolitan region and on Long Island, which has seen a more than 260% growth during that 24-year period, figures show.
Suffolk now has 363,136 Hispanic residents and Nassau has 264,758, data shows.
Experts contend Latinos have flocked to Long Island for many of the same reasons other groups have: improved work opportunities, high-performing schools and relatively affordable housing in communities where the Hispanics appear to be clustered.
Latinos make up a majority of the population in seven hamlets and villages on Long Island as of 2020, according to Census data. Those areas include Brentwood, North Bay Shore, Central Islip, New Cassel, Inwood, Hempstead Village and on the east end – Flanders.
Lawrence Levy, executive dean at Hofstra University’s National Center for Suburban Studies, said the growth of the Latino population on Long Island was not a surprise.
But its future trajectory remains in doubt, he said, in part because of the Trump administration's immigration policies. Census data figures include both legal and undocumented U.S. residents.
"It's pretty hard to predict the future of Latino growth because we're in an unprecedented period in terms of both policy and the processes that flow from it," Levy said. Immigration policies could affect local industries such as construction, and child and elder care, he noted.
The total Latino population increase in the N.Y.C. metropolitan area was 48%, from 3.59 million in 2020 to 5.31 million in 2024, according to Census data.
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The Peconic Baykeeper will hold its annual Day for the Bay tomorrow morning from 9 to 11 a.m. at South Jamesport Beach. This year the event will include the Peconic Estuary Partnership, the Coast Guard Auxiliary and the North Fork Anglers.
Learn about the Blue Water Task Force and participate in hands-on activities to learn about water pollution, runoff and safe fishing and boating on the North Fork.
Tomorrow morning’s event is free.
For further info and registration visit Peconicbaykeeper.org.
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Presumably bedtime won’t be an issue for Game 2 of the N.B.A. Finals tonight since there’s no school tomorrow. But, parents will once again face a championship bedtime challenge before game 3 Monday night.
The last time the New York Knickerbockers won a National Basketball Association title was 1973. With fans' excitement now reaching a fever pitch, many parents are now weighing whether they should let their children stay up late for the 8:30 p.m. tip off of these championship round games against the San Antonio Spurs which don't end until after 11 p.m.
In New York City, Mayor Zohran Mamdani, joined by young Knicks supporters, signed a tongue-in-cheek executive order Monday temporarily repealing bedtimes in the city "so that kids of all ages can watch our team in the NBA Finals."
On Long Island, some parents interviewed by NEWSDAY staff yesterday agreed that the usual bedtime rules should not apply for what could be a once-in-a-lifetime event.
"I have three daughters and I’m making them watch the games," said Michael Burns, 57, who was at Adventureland amusement park in East Farmingdale with his family. "I told the kids, even though we don’t live in New York City, we’re going to go by the mayor’s proclamation: No more bedtime until the series is over."
Henry Fernandez, 40, said he also let his son watch Game 1 of the Finals on Wednesday.
"You could stay up now, don’t worry about it," he said he told his son. "It’s a Knicks game today."
Megan Richards, at an outlet mall in Farmingdale on Thursday, had a slightly different take. She said if the game was on a school day, she might be against kids staying up late.
But, she added, if they keep up with their homework, she might reconsider.
In their nearly 80 year history, the Knicks franchise has won 2 N.B.A. championships in 1970 and 1973…before most current fans were born…regardless of age.
Some educators on Thursday said they were greeted with their share of droopy eyelids in the morning.
"Our kids were definitely a little extra sleepy this morning and some staff members looked a little extra tired. There’s definitely a couple more coffee runs this morning," said Merrick Avenue Middle School Principal Katelyn Dunn.
The Finals run, however, has given educators a chance to connect with their students, she said.
"It’s really great to see such common language and conversations, connections happening at this time of year," Dunn said.
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Pope Leo XIV and other Catholic Church leaders have denounced President Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign, but anger and disappointment has spread in the Diocese of Rockville Centre, where some immigration advocates say the bishop has not spoken publicly enough about the issue.
Bart Jones reports in NEWSDAY that the advocates, parishioners on Long Island, say they're done waiting for Bishop John Barres to act. They have started a grassroots effort seeking to educate and mobilize their fellow churchgoers throughout both Nassau and Suffolk counties in opposition to an immigration crackdown they say is separating families and terrorizing communities.
"We've been very disappointed that he hasn’t addressed the policies, we are very disappointed that he hasn't spoken up," said Richard Koubek of Dix Hills, a former public policy advocate at Catholic Charities who is helping to lead the effort. "We've reached a dead end. We're sort of moving on from him. This is the moment of urgency ... and we're not going to wait anymore."
The new group — dubbed Catholics Welcome Immigrants — is promoting a "tool kit" for pastors and priests that includes everything from ideas for homilies to prayers for immigrants to instructions on how to create parish discussion groups that lead to action. They say the effort is based on the teachings of Catholicism that mandate Christians help the weak, the poor and the vulnerable.
Some Long Island Catholics believe Barres is taking the proper approach on immigration.
"I personally believe, as a Catholic, that the Catholic Church should not speak out against" Trump’s campaign, said Barrett Psareas, vice president of the Nassau County Civic Association. "If there's wrongdoing, fine, go right ahead" and criticize it. "But they're only following the laws, from what we're being told."
Others think Barres, too, is in a difficult position as he must weigh politically diverse constituencies.
"I think I would not want the job of the bishop," said the Rev. Robert Smith, pastor of St. Hugh of Lincoln Roman Catholic Church in Huntington, a heavily Latino parish. "Because I think he's got a lot of things to balance, and I trust that he does that with a sincerity of heart and with the best way that he possibly can."
Bishop Barres, who leads 1.2 million Long Island Catholics in one of the largest dioceses in the nation, declined to be interviewed by Newsday. But in a statement, the diocese said the bishop has consistently called "for comprehensive immigration reform and compassionate care for migrants."
The diocese says Barres helped write a statement by bishops in New York State criticizing aspects of Trump’s campaign and that the church provides extensive support to Latino immigrants.
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Long Island's Eastern box turtles, whose numbers are declining across their home ranges, are the subject of a long-term conservation study. The lead researcher has enlisted the help of a pair of wildlife detection dogs to help find the turtles, which are well-camouflaged on the woodland floor. Tracy Tullis reports in NEWSDAY that ecologists hope the study will lead to specific measures to protect turtles, such as wildlife tunnels. Last year Anna Thonis, a postdoctoral researcher at New York University, launched a study of Long Island’s Eastern box turtles, a "species of special concern" in New York — not officially threatened or endangered but imperiled by habitat loss and fragmentation, the illegal pet trade, pesticides and cars.
Expert advice on how to help turtles
Drive slowly and watch the road for wildlife.
If you see a turtle crossing a road, try standing guard (if it's safe) and let it cross on its own.
If the turtle needs to be moved quickly, carefully pick it up, with your hands on each side of the shell. You can also try using your car's floor mat to pull it across.
Do not defy the will of the turtle. Carry it in the same direction it was trying to reach; otherwise, it will probably try to cross again.
Never pick up a turtle, or any animal, by the tail.
Snap a picture of any turtle you see by a road, dead or alive, and report it to North Fork Turtle Watch.
If you find an injured turtle, call or bring it to a licensed wildlife rehabilitator such as Turtle Rescue of the Hamptons or the Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center.
Don’t take a turtle home — it's illegal.
Sources: Taralynn Reynolds, outreach director for Group for the East End; Karen Testa, director of Turtle Rescue of the Hamptons
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Fueling up for summer road trips could cost more this year than last. Long Island drivers are paying about 47% more for gasoline than they were around this time last year. The average price of a gallon of gas on Long Island was $4.49 yesterday, compared with $3.05 a year ago, according to AAA data compiled by Newsday’s library. In Water Mill last night Speedway was charging $4.69999 per gallon of unleaded regular.
Arielle Dollinger reports in NEWSDAY that gas prices typically rise during the summer travel season as demand increases. But this year’s surge has also been driven by the war with Iran, which has pushed oil prices higher and added pressure at the pump.
“It wasn’t a continuous increase,” said Robert Sinclair Jr., senior manager of public affairs for AAA Northeast. “Feb. 28, we were at $2.86, and then things just went crazy.”
For short trips, driving can be less expensive than flying. But as summer travel season begins, prices remain near levels many drivers consider financially painful. In a survey conducted after the gas-price spike of 2022, AAA found that a majority of drivers said gasoline prices of $4 per gallon or higher would force them to change spending habits, drive less or delay purchases, Sinclair said.
With Long Island’s average gas price above the national average of $4.24 on Thursday, many local drivers are still feeling pain at the pump and looking to maximize mileage and cut costs. Experts recommend paying attention to both vehicle maintenance and driving habits.
“Proper tire inflation pressure is critical to good fuel economy,” Sinclair said.
A properly maintained vehicle also tends to burn fuel more efficiently, he added, cautioning drivers against ignoring warning lights or other signs that a vehicle needs servicing.
How you drive can affect fuel economy, too.
“The type of driving you’re doing. Instead of hitting the gas pedal all the time, can you coast into that light?” Sinclair said.
Speed matters, too.
“The faster you go on a highway, the more wind resistance that you face, making the engine work harder and burn more gasoline,” Sinclair said.
The “sweet spot” for fuel economy is generally between 50 and 55 miles per hour, he said.
Open windows can also reduce efficiency by increasing wind resistance.
Gentle acceleration conserves more fuel than sudden bursts of speed.
“These aggressive drivers that we’re seeing, particularly on local streets, will be burning up a lot more gasoline,” Sinclair said.
