Town Board votes to pierce tax cap: Unanimous vote to override state-mandated limit of 2%
The Shelter Island Town Board is taking the next step to approve a local law to pierce the 2% State-mandated tax levy cap.
A public hearing is slated to take place on Nov. 2, 2026, at 9 a.m. to hear residents for or against the local law entitled “override of the tax levy limit.” A copy of the 2027 preliminary budget will be available for public inspection beginning October 22, 2026, in the Town Clerk’s Office and available online through the Town’s website.
A preliminary budget released on Sept. 29, 2026, by Supervisor Amber Brach-Williams shows an increase of 7.5%.
“There is clearly more work to be done and some tough decisions that we as a Board are going to have to make,” Supervisor Brach-Williams said in the preliminary budget statement. “I met with Department Heads and Committee Chairs to understand their needs and wants for the coming year as well as projections for revenues.”
The biggest component of the Town budget, personnel costs, a total of $8,225,130, represents 44% of total appropriations, and 3.5% of the total budget increase. The Consumer Price Index increase used for salary adjustments this year was 3.5%. The only staffing changes in this budget are the addition of a laborer in the Public Works Department and the consolidation of two part-time custodians into a full-time custodian.
Employee benefit costs encompassing retirement, health insurance and payroll taxes, and insurance are a large part of the 2027 budget. These costs total $5,816,238 or 31% of total appropriations. Employee benefit costs increased $579,482, which accounts for 4.5% of this year’s budget increase.
For the Town Board to override the tax levy limit by the adoption of a local law, 60% of the board would have to vote in favor. The board voted unanimously to publish and post notice of the public hearing on Nov. 2, 2026 at 9 a.m.
Copies of the Draft Comprehensive Plan focusing on water infrastructure, zoning, and municipal spending are available for public review on the Town’s website and may also be inspected during normal business hours in the office of the Town Clerk. The Town Board scheduled public hearings to receive public comment relating to the Draft Comprehensive Plan for Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, at 6 p.m. and Saturday, Nov. 21, 2026 at 11 a.m. All voted in favor except Councilman Albert Dickson.
ADU in NYSPOD
Lynne Colligan is asking to remove her property at 9 South Cartwright Road from the environmentally sensitive Near Shore and Peninsular Overlay District. Ms. Colligan wishes to create an accessory dwelling unit in the basement of her home which she believes never should have been included in the NSPOD to begin with. The Board agreed that the NSPOD was established to protect areas of the Town containing natural resources of ecological importance and to provide appropriate land use protections for areas that are especially sensitive to development impacts. The Board approved the resident application because she demonstrated that the property did not meet the criteria to be included in the NSPOD.
Councilmen Benjamin Dyett and Albert Dickson voted against the motion to hold a public hearing to amend the local zoning law to amend the boundaries of NSPOD for the affected property. However, the motion carried forward with the other members voting in favor and a public hearing will be held on Nov. 9, 2026 at 6 p.m.
In Other News
A public hearing regarding the spending of the Federal Community Development Block Grant was held at Monday’s meeting. The grant is estimated to have $90,000 for the 2027 funding year. “Part of the application process with the county is to open it up to the public for input on how to possibly use the funding,” Ms. Brach-Williams explained.
Erica Steindl, the executive director of CAST (Center for Advocacy, Support and Transformation), spoke on behalf of the organization. CAST launched a satellite food pantry on the Island in March 2022. “Since we began,we provided about 72,300 meals to Shelter Islanders in need,” Ms. Steindl said, including over 21,000 meals just last year. “The needs continue to climb and we’re on track to serve about 25,000 meals this year alone.”
Their “Feed-A-Kid” program provides meals for students during school breaks and summer vacation and has nearly doubled in one year.
“We quietly feed a lot of people,” Natasha Stowe, a volunteer at the Shelter Island Food Pantry at the Presbyterian Church, explained via Zoom at the meeting in hopes of receiving funding. Over the years since its inception in the 1980s, the food pantry has grown and in 2025 officially became an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
“We don’t have the precise counts because we’re entirely volunteer,” Ms. Stowe said. “We serve a lot of people.” The pantry is currently open Tuesdays from 4 to 6 p.m., and Fridays 10 to 1 p.m.
