Suffolk County school districts proposed an average tax increase of 5.28 percent but Bridgehampton wins the honors of being on top with a 38.69 percent tax increase. Congratulations.

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February 7th, 2007

In yet another example of of how Skiing and Snowboarding is used to sell Real Estate, The East Hampton Independent reports that Stewart Marketing will unveil their proposal for “Snow Valley” in Riverhead Long Island. The project will include multiple indoor athletic facilities with opportunities to go skiing and snowboarding and of course 1000 timeshares.snow_bg.jpg

Get this, the Riverhead Town Deputy Attorney said Stewart Marketing is not looking to attract day trippers with it’s 500 foot-tall Ski Resort.

MONTAUK, NY - For the first time in over a decade, the Hamptons Shakespeare Festival (HSF) announced it will not present its free outdoor production in Montauk and Southampton this summer. The Suffolk County Parks Department denied the Festival housing at Theodore Roosevelt County Park in Montauk, where HSF has been based for ten years. The cabins at the Park are being used by contractors working on renovations to Third House, the main building on the Park’s grounds. This housing, which HSF has rented, is essential to the Festival’s ability to present the large majority of its programs.

Hamptons Shakespeare Festival began efforts to find a solution to this situation last fall. Unfortunately, its two-track approach has been unsuccessful. First, between HSF’s extensive housing needs and the high cost of local real estate, the Festival has been unable to find sufficient alternate housing. Secondly, Suffolk County officials have been unwilling to discuss a possible compromise.

HSF’s Artistic Director David M. Brandenburg commented: “The concern expressed by the local community has been truly heartening. Although we are grateful for offers of donated space, we have not found enough accommodations. It’s an enormous year-round effort to mount these productions, and we must house dozens of people during the summer to pull it all together. Because of funding and personnel issues, it will be very challenging for us to return next year. With our supporters’ help though, we will try.”

Besides free Shakespeare-in-the-park, HSF has had to cancel several other programs this summer: its special children’s matinee performance, the Playwrights Reading Series, Meet The Artists discussions, and its internship program in theater production and arts administration for high school and college students.

Camp Shakespeare Continues
Despite the current situation, HSF is excited to continue Camp Shakespeare this summer. The Camp will run August 7 through 11 at Fort Pond House in Montauk. A one-day workshop will be held on August 26 in Southampton.
Registration fees are $375 and $40 respectively. To register or for more information, please call (631) 267-0105.

Camp Shakespeare is a fun, inventive, and welcoming place to explore theater and the words of Shakespeare. In these workshops, young people, ages 8 to 15, discover the power and beauty of language, develop their creativity, and learn effective ways to work together. Participants explore acting, movement, improvisation, and theatrical arts and crafts with trained theater educators. The last day of the weeklong Camp culminates in a student performance for family and friends.

This will be the eighth year of Camp Shakespeare and the third year in its weeklong format in Montauk. The expanded program has been so popular that HSF is happy to offer it again this summer.

This was just emailed to me by Jake:

Paying Homage to a Man Who Left His Mark on the East End
By Nicholas Morehead, The Southampton Press, June 1, 2006

In the quest to complete his latest project, Jake Gorst is up
against a powerful enemy: time. The 36-year-old documentary filmmaker is
looking for financial backing to make a movie about his grandfather, the
renowned architect Andrew Geller, now in his 80s. Mr. Geller’s
unconventional use of angular designs throughout Fire Island and the
East End in 1950s and 1960s established him among the most prominent
East End architects. Examples of Mr. Geller’s work can be seen
throughout eastern Long Island. There’s the Elkin House in Amagansett,
built in 1966 with its series of triangles resembling a geodesic dome
unpeeled. And the Pearlroth House, built in what is now West Hampton
Dunes in 1958. With its side-by-side double diamond configuration, the
Pearlroth House looks more interstellar spacecraft than domestic domicile.

Considered iconic by most who know it—a modern, progressive,
post-World War II resort home—the Pearlroth House, with its bold shapes
and striking design, has inspired generations of architects to pursue
similar careers, according to Mr. Gorst.

Last spring, owner Jonathan Pearlroth offered to donate the house
to Southampton Town rather than demolish it to make way for a new home
he plans to build on the site. The Town Board agreed to take the house
and in October agreed to move the now-famous box kite-shaped beach house
to Hot Dog Beach in East Quogue. There, it will be used as a learning
center, part of a larger recreational master plan for the area.

Mr. Geller’s designs, Mr. Gorst argues, are significant not only
for their architectural brilliance but also for their cultural
significance. Through their unique structures and shapes, Mr. Gorst said
his grandfather “showed the world … that the common man could indeed
be the king of his own castle, or castles.”

From his early days growing up a child of Russian immigrant parents in
Depression-era Brooklyn through his prominent career as vice president
of architecture for Raymond Loewy, considered by may to be the father of
industrial design, Mr. Geller’s story is one that needs to be told, Mr.
Gorst said. And it needs to be told soon. In the last two months alone,
two potential interview subjects died—Justin Fabricius, who ran the
Raymond Loewy office in the early 1970s and John “Hobby” Miller, who
constructed most of Mr. Geller’s designs on Fire Island and in the Hamptons.

“Besides them, there are probably about a dozen original home
owners—all in their 80s and 90s—that we need to get to soon,” Mr. Gorst
said.

Mr. Gorst has made several d o c u m e n t a - ries through his
Northport-based company Jonamac Productions, including “Leisurama,” a
2005 film about a Montauk housing development. Jonamac is currently in
post-production on “Desert Utopia: Mid-Century Architecture in Palm
Springs.”

As for the Geller film, Mr. Gorst’s crew is ready to go. His wife,
Tracey, is set to be the production assistant, and Mr. Gorst himself
does most of the camera work and just about all of the editing. He even
has a title for the project: ”Call Me Andy.”

Mr. Gorst expects the movie will cost about $131,100 to make.

Meanwhile, Mr. Geller is “rather overwhelmed with the attention and
he doesn’t really understand” why anyone is making such a fuss over him,
Mr. Gorst said.

“It’s unbelievable,” Mr. Geller said recently from his Northport
home. Having conducted his portion of the film’s interviews about a year
and a half ago, Mr. Geller said now he’s “just sitting here being flattered.

“That’s what happens when you have a fantastic grandson.”

MONTAUK, NY - The Hamptons Shakespeare Festival (HSF) announced that Suffolk
County Parks Commissioner Ronald F. Foley will not allow the Festival
housing this summer at Theodore Roosevelt County Park in Montauk, putting
the future of the beloved decade-old program in jeopardy. The cabins at the
Park are to be used by contractors working on renovations planned for Third
House, the main building on the Park’s grounds. This housing, which HSF
rents, is essential to house personnel for all of the Festival’s programs.
HSF has searched for alternate accommodations, but no affordable option is
available. Due to funding and personnel issues, skipping a year to return
in 2007 would be nearly impossible for the Festival.

“Everybody agrees Third House needs repair, but it would be an unnecessary
blow to Suffolk County to lose the Festival in the process,” said HSF’s
Artistic Director David M. Brandenburg. “The renovations have been in
waiting for over ten years and might last anywhere from eight to eighteen
months, depending on who you ask. Our main period of housing is only six
weeks. There would seem to be a lot of potential to work it out. We have
approached Commissioner Foley and County Executive Steve Levy seeking a
resolution which would allow the Festival to continue. Unfortunately, they
are unwilling to discuss a compromise.”

The Hamptons Shakespeare Festival is a tremendous economic asset to Suffolk
County bringing cultural and educational services to the public worth
$250,000 annually. The vast majority of HSF’s funding is raised outside the
County and spent inside the County. It is also a significant cultural
tourism attraction which generates substantial related economic activity.
While it is typical for parks departments to hire performing groups, HSF
pays Suffolk County for housing at Theodore Roosevelt County Park.

Besides free Shakespeare-in-the-park, a range of other programs will be
cancelled when the Festival is shut down by the Parks Commissioner. These
include special children’s matinee performances, the Playwrights Reading
Series, Meet The Artists discussions, and an internship program in theater
production and arts administration for high school and college students.
HSF plans to continue Camp Shakespeare workshops this summer and its
in-school artist residencies for the time being no matter what happens at
the Park, but ultimately these programs also won’t survive without the
summer production.

The Festival urges supporters to contact Suffolk County Parks Commissioner
Ronald F. Foley and County Executive Steve Levy to express their opinions on
this issue. In addition, the Festival is still searching for alternate
housing and would greatly appreciate any help.

Players are wanted to fill out teams or start heir own teams for the 2006 summer season. The East End Volleyball Leagues are now accepting teams for leagues to be held at:

Long Beach: Tuesday and Wednesday nights
Cedar Beach, Babylon: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights
Tiana Beach, E. Quogue: Tuesday nights

The leagues, part of the largest beach volleyball program on the East Coast, will offer a variety playing opportunities for players of all levels. There will be divisions for novice, intermediate and skilled level players. Teams will be made up of either 2, 3, 4 or 6-players. There will also be 2 Junior Divisions for kids from 8 to 18 years of age complete with coaching. All divisions, fees and schedules are available online at www.eevb.net.

After play parties at all sites for adult players will be sponsored by Miller Lite. Additional league sponsors that will supply prizes include Native Eyewear, Rider Sandals, Iron Horse Bicycles and Venus Swimwear.

Single players are encouraged to join and be matched up with other players. Team and league sponsors are encouraged to contact East End Volleyball at 631-7289-0397 for further information.

MATTITUCK, NY (April 2006) — North Fork Environmental Council, Inc. (NFEC) announced today that it would host the inaugural event of its Green Voices Speaker Series on Saturday, May 6, 2006. The event, which is free and open to the general public, will be held at Peconic Landing, Rt. 48 in Greenport, from 3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m., with a reception following. Seating is limited so tickets much be reserved by calling NFEC at 631-298-8880.

The event, entitled “Artists Talk on Art and the Environment,” will feature seven Long Island artists – Alan Bull, Janet Culbertson, Lauren Jarrett, Hazel Kahan, Max Moran, Sam Robins and Barbara Roux. The discussion among the artists will be relaxed – like a conversation in a living room – and will be co-moderated by the Series host, Rory MacNish, an NFEC Board member and Multi Media Specialists with Cornell Cooperative Extension’s Marine Program, and Toni Munna, resident Director with the acclaimed River Theatre Company and reporter with the Times-Review Newspapers.

A digital show of images of the artists’ works will be shown, and there will be a question and answer period following the artists’ discussion. The Peconic Landing Art Committee will curate a show of the artists’ works, which will be on display in the facility’s “Arts & Crafts” room.

This event is the first of several Green Voices events which will be held in 2006 and 2007 at various North Fork venues, designed to raise awareness about issues facing the East End environment and what residents can do to take care of our natural resources. The Coastal Research and Education Society of Long Island, Cornell Cooperative Extension, Dowling College, Ducks Unlimited, the East End Arts Council, the Peconic BayKeeper, Quogue Wildlife Refuge, and the Southold and Riverhead Baymen’s Associations, among other area organizations, have all expressed interest in and support for Green Voices.

Future events will be individual lectures, panels, or symposia and will include Robert Dash, Director of the Madoo Conservancy in Sagaponack; Ron Gelvard of Quogue Wildlife Refuge; Michael Combs and the Combs family of decoy carvers; Captain Joe Frohnhoefer of Sea Tow Services International; Barbara Shinn and David Page, owners of Home restaurant in New York City and Shinn Vineyards; Abby Jane Brody, renowned local horticulturalist and East Hampton Star columnist; Lauren Jarrett, Executive Director of EEOC organic farm in East Hampton, and Kevin MacAllister, the Peconic BayKeeper, among others.

Additional information about Green Voices, the subjects addressed in the Series and future events will soon be available on NFEC’s website, www.nfec1.org. Each event will be videotaped and shown on NFEC’s new public access television show on Channel 20, “Save What’s Left,” which airs on Sunday evenings at 9:00 p.m. The show’s Director is Rory MacNish, the Series’ Host.

Underwriters for the Series thus far include Apple Honda Motors of Riverhead; Mr. and Mrs. Peter Cooper; Dr. and Mrs. Joseph Duva; Mr. and Mrs. Irwin Garsten; KeySpan; LIPA; Mrs. Gerda Miller, the Dennis and Dorann Sheehan Charitable Fund, the Sabin Conservation Fund, and Suffolk County, under the auspices of the Honorable Edward P. Romaine, 1st District Legislator.

The NFEC is a 1,500-member grassroots organization dedicated to the preservation of land, sea, air and quality of life on Long Island’s North Fork. Incorporated in 1972, NFEC has a successful track record of over 30 years in raising public awareness of key environmental issues, increasing public participation in important town meetings and write-in campaigns, and continuing the fight to protect the environment in Riverhead and Southold towns.

MONTAUK, NY — The Hamptons Shakespeare Festival (HSF) will present a reading of “As You Like It” on Saturday, January 28 at 7pm at the Fort Pond House in Montauk (going north on Second House Road, make a right at the sign after the Shepherd’s Neck Inn). The presentation will feature actors from the Festival. Admission is free. For more information, please call (631) 267-0105.

HSF began its winter and spring reading series last year. A unique aspect of the program is that members of the public have the opportunity to read alongside the professional actors. Of course, you may also attend without reading. If you would like to read, the Festival suggests, but does not require, that you read the play in advance. Some copies of the play will be available, but everyone is encouraged to bring their own copy.

The Hamptons Shakespeare Festival is a nonprofit company dedicated to enriching and expanding arts and culture on eastern Long Island. The Festival has presented ten years of free outdoor productions and educational programs. This reading series joins the Festival’s other
programs: free outdoor mainstage productions, Shake It Up! in-school artist residencies, Camp Shakespeare workshops for kids and teens, Meet The Artists discussions, special children’s matinees, and the summer Playwrights Reading Series featuring new plays and works-in-progress.

The Eastern Long Island Chapter of Surfrider Foundation is proud to announce that it is now fully legal at all times to surf along the entire shoreline of Camp Hero State Park in Montauk N.Y. The two surfspots known as “Spooner’s”, and “Dickie”s Left”, can now be surfed with no restrictions. It is important to know that this process took many years, and was achieved through cooperation and respect between surfcasters, surfers, and State Park officials. We ask for your continued support as we have many more projects and issues which we will be working on with N.Y. State Parks in the future. Much thanks to all who were a part of this process!