During yesterday's Southampton Town Board meeting, board members were expected to vote on a resolution adding Barrett, Bonacci & Van Weele, P.C. to the team of consultants for the town's lawsuit against the Shinnecock Indian Nation's proposed casino. Currently, law firm Nixon Peabody is on the payroll. Unable to go into detail because of ongoing litigation, Supervisor Skip Heaney said only that the additional counsel was requested for their "expertise" on a specific "area of interest."

A court date has not been set, as Federal District Court Judge Thomas Platt continues to review evidence from both sides.

Platt has consolidated two lawsuits into one, allowing the town to work in conjunction with New York State. The former is suing to stop the casino from being built on the basis that that the town has zoning authority over the proposed site for the gaming facility, and that area is zoned residential, not commercial. The Shinnecock claim it is reservation land. The latter is suing on the basis that the Shinnecock are not a federally recognized tribe by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and are therefore prohibited from building such a facility.

The Shinnecock have argued that a gaming facility would remedy the Nation's ailing economy and downtrodden people.

Fishing Dock Renovation
The board authorized the town engineer George Mootoo to proceed with additional work on the Shinnecock Commercial Fishing Dock renovation project.

Situated on the Shinnecock Inlet off Dune Road in Hampton Bays, the facility's added work would include additional curbs, a chain link fence and gates; removal of debris from the site; and changes in design and materials for the 750-square-foot dockmaster's office building. Considered to be the focal point of this commercial fishing community, the facility accommodates about 20 commercial fishing boats and wholesale fish distributors. There is a subsequent resolution authorizing Heaney to sign a contract with McDowell Electric Corporation to install additional outlets, an "Exit" light, and a carbon monoxide detector.

Special Exceptions
There are a number of agenda items slated to appear in a public hearing on November 9, including the town's new special exception standards for multi-family residential development — that is, townhouses and apartments, as well as cottage housing development, or detached, single-family units. The proposed law for MFRDs and cottages states that these complexes would be allowed in any residence or business district town wide, save for CR-200, CR-120, and R-120 zones, or three and five-acre zoning.

First introduced by the supervisor a year-and-a-half ago, the legislation would enable applicants of small multi-family projects to proceed to the Southampton Town Planning Board with development rights, versus having to ask the town board for a zone change.

Although the law was first met with resistance due to concern about drawing more people to an already overpopulated area, town council members have agreed that there is now a great need for affordable housing.

"This is one I hope we can move forward with," Heaney said last Friday, adding moments later that "There's a lot of creativity that can come with this."

Another piece of legislation intended to reach the ears at the November hearing is on special exception use standards for greenhouses on lots less than three acres. The stringent standards governed by the town planning board require applicants to meet specific (and sometimes numerous) criteria. Up until now there have been no such criteria for the building of greenhouses.

The hearing will take place at Southampton Town Hall at 1 p.m.

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