Shelter Island still lagging in CPF revenues
Shelter Island Community Preservation Fund (CPF) revenues showed a slight recovery from the negative numbers it has reflected in 2018, but the town’s revenues for the first seven months of the year are still down by 38.4 percent, bringing in $690,000 this year compared with $1.12 million for the same period in 2017.
The CPF money represents a 2 percent tax paid by property buyers with funds used primarily to purchase farmland or open spaces. Up to 20 percent of each town’s CPF revenues can be applied to water quality improvement projects.
Overall, the five East End towns showed a 6. 2 percent increase in CPF money, according to Assemblyman Fred Thiele Jr. (I-Sag Harbor). The total for the first seven months of the year for all five municipalities is $60.36 million compared with $56.83 million for the same period in 2017. Total CPF revenues for the month of July were $10.18 million as compared with $7.54 million in July 2017.
Only Southampton of the five East End towns joins Shelter Island in continuing to show a lag, reporting that its CPF revenues for the first seven months of this year are down by 6.6 percent. That town netted $32.68 million this year as compared with $34.99 million for the same period last year.
Riverhead showed the greatest gain in CPF money for the first seven months of the year, up by 54.3 percent from the same period last year. Riverhead garnered $2.67 million this year as compared with 1.73 million for the same period last year.
East Hampton was up by 34.4 percent, netting $19.97 million this year as compared with $14.86 million last year.
In Southold, the increase was 5.1 percent or $4.35 million for the first seven months of 2018 as compared with $4.14 million for the same period last year.
Since its inception in 1999, the Community Preservation Fund has generated $1.343 billion and brought in $98.73 million in the past 12 months, Mr. Thiele said.
