Island preservation revenues on plus side

After many months of negative numbers from the Community Preservation Fund (CPF), Shelter Island is seeing an 8.5 percent increase for the first five months of 2019 as compared with the same period last year.

The CPF funds are raised by a 2 percent tax assessed to home buyers in the five East End towns and used to buy and preserve open spaces and improve water quality.

In the numbers released Monday, the other four towns all show downturns.

Shelter Island secured $510,000, an improvement from the $470,000 raised in the first five months of 2018.

But the overall tally in all five East End towns show a 27.5 percent decrease, pulling in $29.4 million this year as compared with $40.5 million for the first five months of 2018.

The revenues for May this year were $5.5 million compared with $9 million for May of last year.

The numbers were announced by Assemblyman Fred Thiele Jr. (I-Sag Harbor). Mr. Thiele noted that, overall, CPF revenues have declined for five consecutive months compared with the same five months of 2018.

“While there is wide speculation as to why this decline has occurred, there’s no doubt that the six-year streak of $90 plus million per year in CPF revenue is in serious jeopardy,” Mr. Thiele said.

If current tends continue, he added, revenues would be in the $70 million range for 2019, the lowest since the Great Recession of 2008. Local government officials should closely monitor CPF revenues in the coming months and be cautious about making long-term projections, the legislator said.

Southampton experienced the sharpest drop, down 31.4 percent for the first five months of this year, bringing in $15 million as compared with $22 million last year.

Riverhead, which has been on the positive side when other East End towns were experiencing negative percentage numbers, dropped by 29 percent for the first five months of this year, bringing in $1.3 million this year compared with $2 million last year.

East Hampton experienced a decline of minus 27 percent, bringing in $9.4 million for the first five months of this year as compared with $13 million last year.

Southold was down by 6.3 percent, from $3.3 million last year to $3 million this year.