Codger’s column: Post-election blues

The results of last week’s Shelter Island election are scheduled to last only a year, making it more of a test drive than a new start, which Codger thinks may be a good thing. We can rinse and repeat if we’re happy next year or cancel. 

As always, optimistic Codger hopes we’re happy and thinks that’s possible. 

Gordon Gooding is gone. (He says he’s “done.” O.K.?) Codger has always liked Gordon, appreciated his dogged, inspiring work as chairman of the Community Preservation Fund Advisory Board, and considered him a breath of fresh air when he came aboard the Town Board. But the breath turned sour between a lackluster supervisor coasting on her personal popularity and a challenger without a challenging vision, a coherent campaign or well-articulated points.

What could be positive here is Amber Brach-Williams’ response to the pressure and/or freedom to actually accomplish something having been given a mandate and the welcome energy of the so-called “all-girl band” of Meg Larsen, Liz Hanley and herself. 

Meg and Liz are both known for hard work, strong communication skills and a signature project that hasn’t yet bloomed. For Meg, it’s the now nearly-mythical comprehensive plan, so long in the making it should probably be revised already. 

Codger wonders if the reason it can’t get cooked is because the officials of this century haven’t really had a strong vision for the town. Should Shelter Island be a glossy tourist destination, a home for working families, a haven for second-home owners or a socially-engineered mix?

Liz, the only new addition to the Board, has a somewhat similar issue; community housing has yet to appear because too many people want to know exactly who would be living there. Codger wants to know. The concept of community or affordable housing is knee-jerk simple. It sounds so good. But the reality is so complex that Codger wonders how often people slow-walk it into future administrations.

The election was hailed as a Republican victory, which is technically true, but puzzling as no one was kidnapped or tear-gassed. As James Dawson asked in a perceptive letter last week, “Why can’t more Republican candidates openly state whether they disagree with some of the clearly unlawful or immoral policies promoted by President Trump?”

Maybe the Shelter Island Republicans feel no connection to what James describes as such “troubling positions — as lack of due process, extrajudicial killings, or extreme voter suppression.” A case might be made, thinks Codger, that these are not local issues, although one might also wonder then why call yourself a Republican. Codger suggests coming back to that before next year’s election.

Codger wonders if our new and re-elected officials learned anything from the recent Soloviev affair, especially their absolute helplessness to protect us from a billionaire’s whim. Are there enforceable regulations available? After all, the family and their reported 22 children are still around and now they are also pitching several major developments for Cutchogue that could include a spa, a vineyard, a boutique hotel and several dozen homes, many on the waterfront.  

Well, thought Codger, at least that’s somewhere else. Just then, an old acquaintance, Philip Zweifach of Silver Beach and Sarasota, popped up to raise an unpleasant specter and share his latest anxiety.

He recalled that when his wife, Charlotte, served on Mashomack’s Board of Trustees in the 1990’s, there was concern that in hard economic times the Preserve’s owner, The Nature Conservancy, might sell Mashomack to fund its many global projects. An attempt had been made to purchase Mashomack’s 2,360 acres. About a third of Shelter Island was vulnerable to development. 

According to Dr. Zweifach, an ophthalmologist, members of Mashomack’s Board talked to members of the Town Board about ways to preemptively block such purchases, including new zoning regulations. Apparently they didn’t come up with a plan. Time passed, the threat faded or was forgotten. 

But not entirely. In a letter to Codger, Phil Zweifach wondered if “a billionaire investor” might consider “establish[ing] themselves as Shelter Islanders because they have an eye on Mashomack.”

Later, in a telephone conversation, he said he felt it was important to “wake people up to a real risk.” With 11 miles of exquisite coastline available to encircle hundreds of new multi-million dollar homes, who could blame a billionaire with a wallet as big as their eyes? If Cutchogue doesn’t work out…

Ah, for the bad old days worrying about the intrusive sound of violins should the Perlmans be allowed on the Island. The landslide victory of New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani prompted some local Facebook correspondents to predict a flood of newcomers fleeing Marx and Engels as they once fled COVID. They would have the cash to buy new houses at Mashomack Shores.

Have a fun year, Amber, Meg and Liz.