Editorial

Resolve issues in 2010


The Town Board adopts resolutions all the time. For the NewYear, we’d like the board members to consider making theresolutions that follow.

Keep promises about putting the Island’s environmentfirst. Town Board candidates touted the need to protectthe aquifer during Election Ë”09 campaigns, and morerecently the board focused its Comprehensive Plan review on theaquifer instead of house sizes. That’s all well and good butsomething is missing here. The board’s environmental record isimproving but it has been reluctant to consistently connect thedots between aquifer protection and residential development. Wehave no heavy industry here, no large scale commercial activities;nearly all environmental impacts are tied to residential use ofproperty. The aquifer needs to come first, one building permit at atime, and that will mean getting a handle on individual impacts andsaying “no to more homeowners’ plans.

Cut back on executive sessions. There was atime, not so long ago, when the board did not convene an executivesession after nearly every work session. A small, open governmentdoesn’t need to go behind closed doors on a weekly basis. Lastmonth, the Town Board invited the Zoning Board into an executivesession discussion, invoking personnel matters and propertynegotiations as the exceptions to the Open Meetings Law justifyingthe closed meeting. That joint session was a murky bit of business,presumably intended to iron out issues related to the Zagoreoshouse rebuild on the First Causeway. At a minimum, the Zoning Boardshould have called its own executive session at the same time,formally, with a public vote to convene it.

Continue vigilant review of town finances.Shelter Island is distinguished from surrounding towns by keepingits budget in line without cutting personnel. That’s admirable butwill it be sustainable if the economy doesn’t turn around soon? Anew Police Department contract, in mediation for almost a year,will likely be ratified this year, and even if the town standstough, there will be years of raises to pay in addition toincreases in the salaries budgeted for 2010.

Face tough community issues … and lead. TheTown Board is in a unique position to enlighten and inspireIslanders. The community is facing difficult issues, foremost astruggling business climate and continued substance abuse problems.The Town Board can spotlight these issues without legislating orappointing more committees. Our leaders can host community forums,broadcast educational programs and more, using their elected officeto make a difference.

A little resolution analysis is a healthy thing, for theReporter as well. We will renew our commitment to covering theseissues – impacts on the aquifer, open government, town finances,economic and social challenges – in 2010.