Shelter Island Reporter Letters to the Editor: Sept. 26, 2024
GRATITUDE
To the Editor:
As we reflect on the remarkable contributions of our Democratic Committee, it is important to extend our heartfelt thanks to the dedicated individuals who have served our community with unwavering commitment.
Their efforts have been instrumental in shaping our town’s progress and upholding the values we cherish.
We want to express our profound gratitude to the outgoing Democratic Committee members for their exceptional service. Their leadership, vision, and dedication have played a crucial role in advancing our shared goals and ensuring that our voices are heard.
Their hard work has made a significant impact on our community, and we are deeply appreciative of their contributions.
In particular, we would like to highlight Heather Reylek, whose outstanding commitment to service as the Democratic Party Chair has been extraordinary. Over her long tenure, Heather has exemplified the very essence of dedication and leadership.
Her passion for public service and her tireless efforts to engage with our community have set a remarkable standard for all of us.
Heather’s tenure as Chair has been marked by her ability to navigate challenges and inspire others, and has left an indelible mark on our organization.
As we transition to new leadership, we carry forward the legacy of commitment and excellence that the previous outgoing committee members have established. We are deeply grateful for their service and look forward to continuing their work in advancing our community’s best interests.
Thank you once again to Alex Hu, Susan Jones, Robert Reylek, Heather Reylek and all the past committee members for your exceptional service and dedication.
THE SHELTER ISLAND DEMOCRATIC COMMITTEE: CATHERINE BRIGHAM, KATHERINE DOROSKI, KATHY GOODING, BILL MASTRO, GREG TONER, MARK MOBIUS, BARRIE SILVER
CITIZEN SCIENCE
To the Editor:
We’ve been hearing lately about “Citizen Science,” a term used by a candidate for the Town Board and a member of the Water Advisory Committee (WAC), Lisa Shaw, in her ad in the Aug. 29, 2024 issue of Shelter Island Reporter, as an adequate method for assessing our water situation on Shelter Island.
Let’s think about this: Would we go to a “citizen dentist” for a tooth ache? What about a “citizen appendectomy?”
The truth is that we have only one aquifer and our water situation is complex in that different parts of the Island have different problems and different needs.
There is a current debate within the Town Board about whether to append the 2020 WAC Report to the Comprehensive Plan.
Rather than rely on an outdated report created by citizens who lack formal credentials and which recommends unwarranted and costly solutions such as Suffolk County Water Authority public water for the entirety of Shelter Island, we owe it to ourselves and to future generations to get an independent scientific analysis of our water situation that will enable cost-efficient area-specific solutions.
LILY HOFFMAN, Shelter Island
PROTECTING NEIGHBORHOODS
To the Editor:
The current draft of the Comprehensive Plan calls for a “review” of the noise ordinance. Vague language in the Plan easily could result in the removal of the current sound level limitation of 50 decibels for outdoor amplified music.
When the Town enacted the current Noise law in 1998, Board members studied decibel levels and took the important step of enacting a measurable standard for outdoor amplified music. Someone else’s loud amplified music outside can truly hurt a nearby homeowner’s enjoyment of time in his own backyard.
The current law with its measurable standard applies equally to party houses, STRs and the occasional inconsiderate neighbors; and it is the only protection homeowners have against nonconforming businesses in residential areas that frequently play amplified music outdoors for large events.
To their credit, Councilmen Dickson and Dyett have asked for language in the Comp Plan affirming this measurable 50dB standard for outdoor amplified music. They additionally proposed that amplified music at bars, nightclubs and restaurants be played indoors, a standard required in business zoning districts.
Their logical reasoning is that if businesses in B districts must “take it indoors” — so should nonconforming commercial interests in residential neighborhoods.
For the last two years multiple neighborhoods, and many individuals around the Island, have asked the drafters of the Comp Plan to strengthen the noise ordinance to protect residents from loud outdoor amplified sound. It is wrong for the drafters to ignore these many requests in favor of a handful of businesses seeking to weaken the noise law.
KIM NOLAND, President, Shelter Island Association
SIMPLE, REALLY
To the Editor:
I am glad to see people standing up for themselves as regards the Recycling Center, yet sad that it had to come to that. It was totally unnecessary, just a very few people scratching an old itch.
The liability issue is real, but overblown. I’ve seen a lot of crazy stuff on Goat Hill … people, cars and houses hit by golf balls moving in excess of 100 mph, carts turned over, and clubs thrown.
Then there is the skateboard “park” just a couple of hundred yards away from the areas in question. No risk there, right? No danger of broken arms, legs or necks.
I play basketball on Sundays at the school: twisted ankles, had my nose busted, seen tendons torn and eyes nearly knocked out. At the old timer’s softball game, I’ve seen people carried off.
We accept these risks because there is deemed to be a societal value to the activities. The same goes for the pickers at the Recycling Center. It means a lot to these people.
It’s practical, it’s social, and despite the fears expressed, it’s relatively safe. One incident in 14 years is a pretty good record, and not indicative of the chaos some suggest exists.
It’s simple, really. Indemnify the Town, wear a visibility vest, shoes and gloves. No children, no exceptions. The attendants on duty can require you to immediately address deficiencies or leave.
For every person who wanted picking closed there are more than 100 who want it open. Even I can do that math. The Board needs to make it happen. Let’s move on.
PAUL SHEPHERD, Former councilman, Town of Shelter Island
NEW DOCK LAW
To the Editor:
If you are a waterfront property owner on Shelter Island, you need to be at the town hall on Oct. 7 at 6 p.m. The Board is poised to adopt one of the most egregious attacks on the rights of waterfront property owners with a new anti-dock law.
The law is about to ban all docks on the outside waters of Shelter Island without any due process. The new law also attempts to redefine the term “Riparian Rights.” The new law if adopted states, “53 7.A — A dock shall not be an impediment nor a menace to navigation or constructed in areas identified as unsuitable and shall always provide and allow suitable and unobstructed passageway around or over such dock so that the public will have free unobstructed passage along the foreshore.”
“Unsuitable areas” is a new definition added by the author of the law where in summation, will not allow any new docks to be built anywhere on the outside waters of Shelter Island. This includes Hay Beach Point to Reel Point, Sungic Point to Nicholls Point and Jenning’s Point to Shell Beach Point.
To sum it up, all of Shelter Island except Jenning’s Point (Kissing Rock) to Hay Beach Point. Your taxes will not go down but your property values will. There is also a planned new tax (fee) on all dock owners to pay for a new full-time dock inspector to come and inspect your dock annually. It also attempts to remove recreational use of docks such as fishing, relaxing or other uses.
Please show up and voice your concerns. Not my fight, as I do not own waterfront property but I feel this is wrong and must be stopped. This is just the beginning folks. Better pay attention.
TOM CRONIN, Candidate for Town Council
DANGER ON THE ROADS
To the Editor:
Driving home just before midnight on Saturday, I was almost forced off the road twice by a wedding bus being driven aggressively and dangerously. The bus first tried to force its way around me as I was stopped at the junction of Winthrop Road and North Ferry Road. When that didn’t work the bus followed me down the hill to Marie Eiffel where it tried to undertake me at speed using the parking spaces instead of the actual road!
When I finally met up with the driver at the North Ferry car park, he justified his actions by laughing, asking “was I going to arrest him” and admitting that he had driven that way because “his passengers had to make the last ferry.”
Wedding buses charging recklessly to make the ferries late at night on weekends is a dangerous trend we need to nip in the bud as the Island’s hotels continue to grow their wedding business.
STEPHEN WALKER, Shelter Island
