Shelter Island Reporter Letters to the Editor: Nov. 13, 2026
THANK YOU
To the Editor:
The Taylor’s Island Foundation Board wishes to thank the Community Preservation Fund Advisory Board and the Shelter Island Town Board for supporting our use of the Josephson Head Preserve, which has a view of Taylor’s Island before the trees leaf out, for our Aug. 15 Benefit. We also want to thank the Shelter Island Highway Department for their stellar efforts in caring for the grounds of the Preserve.
Magda and Jack Josephson offered us the use of their property in 2012 when the Cabin was being restored. They were frequent attenders at our Taylor’s Island Benefits. While we opted for St. Gabriel’s Retreat House that year instead, we feel like we finally honored their invitation.
The weather and spirit of our gathering matched the ideal setting. The written words of our guests tell it best, “Beautiful venue; Wonderful location for this great event.”
PAT HUNT, MARYANN KOCH, JIM MITCHELL, GREG RAYMOND, HARRIET REILLY, CHARITY ROBEY, Shelter Island
A GOOD START
To the Editor:
Last week the Shelter Island Republican Committee called for a hard look at our Island’s expenditures, guided by “practical solutions, sound financial planning, and accountability.” Agreed!
The SIRC highlights an important fact: the Town Board cuts the proposed tax increase “largely through the use of additional fund balance, rather than comparable reductions in operating expenditures,” and that such decisions “deserve examination alongside the Town’s longer-term financial commitments.” Agreed!
The reserve is not a magically replenishing pot of gold. It is a savings account to be used with care. Our Town supervisor cannot keep routinely leaning on it, as members of the Town Board have explained. We need to solve our recurring budget crunch without resorting to raising property taxes or spending down our reserve. To do this, we must better manage payroll costs.
Getting there requires honest conversation between officials and residents, and we haven’t seen that yet. For example, the 2027 proposed budget is an 8.1% increase, but that was not mentioned. Too much is hidden and left unsaid about our Town expenses. During Town Board meetings, residents state their views and the Board listens politely but rarely responds. Instead of sitting through our monologues, the Board should engage us. We need to know what our Town leaders think about what we say before they vote.
That matters most for the Comprehensive Plan, which is poised to rush through to a vote with minimal transparency. Two public hearings in the off-season, with limited comment, are not enough. We all need to slow down and really hear each other.
More than a century ago, Louis Brandeis wrote that “sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants.” It is still true.
LYNNE WEIKART, Shelter Island
TIGHT FIT
To the Editor:
I read the police blotter this morning and was surprised to read about the two accidents on the North Ferry.
I was on the North Ferry coming onto the Island Sunday night and observed an accident myself (which has never happened in 30 years). It was perhaps a new employee (someone I didn’t recognize) directing the cars and they asked a large car to go into the far right lane. It was a really tight fit and they hit the right side.
It will be interesting to see if this continues.
TODD KRIZELMAN, Shelter Island
