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Education
School car wash canceled
May 24, 2013
Don’t forget to vote: Polls open until 9 p.m.
May 20, 2013
Obituaries
Obituary: Reporter staffer David Lee Draper
May 20, 2013
Obituaries: Draper, Rodgers
March 7, 2013
Real Estate
ZBA: Both yes and no on controversial house
May 23, 2013
High end real estate deals escalate
May 1, 2013
Opinion
Gimme Shelter: The baby of the family
May 24, 2013
This week's letters to the editor
May 24, 2013
Shelter Island Zoning Board of Appeals
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ZBA: Both yes and no on controversial house
As expected Wednesday night, the Shelter Island Zoning Board of Appeals gave the owners of a controversial house at 6 Cartwright Road a clean bill of health on one structure within the compound, but said no to what most members regarded as a second separate structure. Only Patricia Shillingburg voted against...
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ZBA news: Owners get half a loaf, Yacht Club gets go ahead
Question: Will owners of a controversial house on Cartwright Road accept half a loaf or try to overturn a ZBA decision? A ruling will come down next week, enabling the owners to get a certificate of occupancy for the main part of their house, but they'll have to make changes to...
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Letters to the Editor: Readers sound off on ‘dark skies’
To the Editor: As spring mating season approaches I again would like to thank Jean Lawless for her tireless efforts protecting the piping plovers. Each year we give up a little of our personal freedom so these endangered birds have a quiet safe nesting area at our local beaches. This is...
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Featured Letter: On dark skies
To the Editor: I probably have more landscape lighting than anyone else on the Island, yet I am in favor of certain guidelines. Since the installation of my extravagant night lighting six years ago, I have received nothing but compliments or the occasional request for advice. The secret lies in wattage. I...
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Dark skies law spurs debate on government overreach
A discussion Tuesday at the Town Board work session on proposed dark skies legislation turned into a debate on the role of government. In the past the board has rejected dark skies ordinances that would restrict the type of lighting fixtures residents can install. Town Attorney Laury Dowd has drafted new...
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Chequit owners win construction extension, but no word on sale
More than a year after owners of the Chequit received Zoning Board of Appeals approval to install a swimming pool and patio in advance of an expected sale, the property remains unchanged and the owners have secured another year to complete the project. The original approval that came in January 2012...
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Town Attorney drafts dark skies law
Shelter Island Zoning Board of Appeals want a proposed new dark skies law to carry penalties that will ensure compliance. Several recent Shelter Island ZBA application approvals have included requirements that projects be “dark skies” compliant, but the town hasn’t yet adopted a lighting policy that spells out the details, Town...
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This week in Shelter Island history
10 YEARS AGO Horseback riding lessons offered After a lengthy battle to secure Zoning Board of Appeals and Town Board approval to operate Paard Hill Farms, owners Pieter Ruig and Ellen Lear were advertising a riding program of 10 private, semiprivate or group lessons with rates ranging from $500 for 10 private...
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This week in Shelter Island history
10 YEARS AGO Most snow some have ever seen No. It wasn’t the winter of 2013, but February 2003 when 20 inches fell on Shelter Island in what was called the President’s Day storm. At the time, it was the most snow the Island had in at least seven years and highway...
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The way forward, with a look back
Shelter Island powers-that-be successfully tackled a number of issues in 2012, but there are still pending issues left on the table, and various boards have full plates for 2013. Among items waiting for action are: • Implementation of the new ban on underground irrigation systems due to take effect on September 1,...
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Buyer in the saddle for Paard Hill horse farm?
A prospective buyer wants to continue operating the Paard Hill horse farm, which founders Pieter Ruig and Ellen Lear have had on the market for $7.95 million, Supervisor Jim Dougherty announced at Tuesday’s Town Board work session. Under a stipulation of settlement dating back years but recorded only recently, any new...
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ZBA wants terms for institutions
Should public properties such as the Mashomack Preserve and Sylvester Manor be exempt from terms imposed on private lots, limiting them to one residences on a single parcel? The Town Board clearly made the distinction earlier this month, granting the Nature Conservancy that runs the Preserve permission to install an additional...
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Herrmann’s Castle remake okayed
Three of five Zoning Board of Appeals members Wednesday night agreed to a special permit necessary for owner Zach Vella to reconstruct Herrmann’s Castle and expand buildings on the site at 85 Shore Road. The imposing structure was originally built in 1973 by Walter Herrmann, a German immigrant, who came to...
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ZBA to allow for expansion of Silver Beach house
The Shelter Island Zoning Board of Appeals is expected to approve an application from Michael and Maia Ietta to renovate their nonconforming house at 12 North Silver Beach Road and grant the couple both an area variance and special permit for the renovations that will double the size of the...
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A deal may be close on 36-acre Paard Hill site
Twelve years after Ellen Lear and Pieter Ruig won a hard-fought battle before the Shelter Island Zoning Board of Appeals to create Paard Hill Farm on Ram Island Road, the horse farm is no longer operating and the property is for sale at a $7.95 million asking price. “We just decided...
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More details requested before ZBA okays pool at La Maison Blanche
Neighbors are worried about noise if a proposed pool is built at La Maison Blanche inn on Stearns Point Road but they wanted owner John Sieni to know that they’re not necessarily opposed to his plan. They told the Zoning Board of Appeals at a December 14 public hearing that they...
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Editorial: Pools and the rules
The case of the Chequit now pending before the Zoning Board of Appeals looks likely to become the perfect example of why businesses in residential zones have nothing to fear from public concern and oversight when they seek to expand. There’s no question that putting in a pool constitutes an expansion...
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Zoning Board: ZBA chair suggests requiring surveys
The Shelter Island Zoning Board of Appeals was expected to approve variances last night that will allow Blake and Chad Pike to keep their veranda, pool house and patio at 1 Bluff Avenue. But at the December 7 work session, the ZBA began exploring changes to its procedures to avoid...
