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Riverhead voter guide 2026: Meet the candidates on your ballot

by Oct 23, 2026
Compare the candidates, their priorities and the jobs they’re seeking in this guide to the races Riverhead voters will decide Nov. 3. Plus: local sample ballot.

Halpin and Rothwell field questions at Heart of Riverhead candidates forum

by Oct 22, 2026
Downtown flooding, housing, code enforcement and EPCAL redevelopment were among the topics Jerry Halpin and Ken Rothwell addressed at a packed candidate forum Wednesday night.

Daily Briefing

Community News

‘May Peace Prevail on Earth’: Rotary dedicates Peace Pole in Riverhead

by | Oct 22, 8:00 am
Inscribed in English, Spanish, Polish and Ukrainian, a new Peace Pole on Riverhead's Riverwalk carries the message 'May Peace Prevail on Earth.'

Walmart expansion set for Nov. 19 public hearing: Planning Board meeting wrap-up

by Oct 21, 2026
A proposal to expand Riverhead’s Walmart by approximately 26,835 square feet and add grocery offerings will go to a public hearing Nov. 19.

Former Riverhead teacher and coach sentenced to three years in prison for sending explicit images to minors

by Oct 21, 2026
A former Riverhead High School teacher and soccer coach was sentenced Wednesday to three years in prison for soliciting nude images from underage girls and sending them sexually explicit images of himself.

Town Board adopts budget amendments trimming supervisor’s proposed tax levy increase

by Oct 21, 2026
Amendments proposed by Council Member Ken Rothwell cut Supervisor Jerry Halpin's proposed 2027 tax levy by $643,858, reducing the tax levy increase to 1.73%. The budget hearing is set for Nov. 4.

Riverhead schools adopt AI policy, accept clean audit at Oct. 14 meeting

by Oct 21, 2026
The Riverhead Board of Education approved an artificial intelligence policy Oct. 14 that sets expectations for student use, requires supervisor approval for staff and bars confidential district information from generative AI systems.

Sacred Indigenous site at heart of preserved Shoreham forest

by Oct 20, 2026
Deep in the newly preserved woods around the former Shoreham nuclear plant sits Split Rock, a glacial formation that the Unkechaug Nation considers one of the most sacred sites on Long Island.

67 Riverhead H.S. students and grads earn AP Scholar honors

by Oct 20, 2026
Sixty-seven Riverhead High School students and recent graduates earned AP Scholar awards for their performance on Advanced Placement exams, including 12 who also earned the AP Capstone Diploma.

Public safety advisory: Bow hunting underway at EPCAL

by Oct 20, 2026
Visitors to Veterans Memorial Park and other parts of the EPCAL site are advised to stay on the walking path and should not enter wooded areas where active deer hunting is taking place.

Riverhead man pleads guilty in pandemic grant fraud case

by Oct 20, 2026
A Riverhead man accused of using falsified tax returns to obtain state pandemic relief grants for Brooklyn residents has pleaded guilty to second-degree grand larceny.

Halpin and Rothwell go head to head at Jamesport candidates forum

by Oct 19, 2026
Riverhead supervisor candidates presented their views on a range of local issues Saturday morning at the Greater Jamesport Civic Association candidates forum.

Riverhead students recognize school board members for their service

by Oct 19, 2026
Riverhead students recognized Board of Education members for their service during the board’s Oct. 14 meeting, with presentations highlighting their involvement in schools and support for student programs.

Opinion | Guest Column

New York’s open government watchdog needs an overhaul

by | Oct 23, 5:06 pm
Unfilled vacancies on the NYS Committee on Open Government, the body charged with overseeing FOIL and the Open Meetings Law, cause its second meeting of the year to be canceled for lack of a quorum.

Riverhead schools adopt AI policy, accept clean audit at Oct. 14...

The Riverhead Board of Education approved an artificial intelligence policy Oct. 14 that sets expectations for student use, requires supervisor approval for staff and bars confidential district information from generative AI systems.

67 Riverhead H.S. students and grads earn AP Scholar honors

Sixty-seven Riverhead High School students and recent graduates earned AP Scholar awards for their performance on Advanced Placement exams, including 12 who also earned the AP Capstone Diploma.

Riverhead students recognize school board members for their service

Riverhead students recognized Board of Education members for their service during the board’s Oct. 14 meeting, with presentations highlighting their involvement in schools and support for student programs.

School board members say town politicized negotiations over SRO program

Five Riverhead school board members accused town officials Wednesday of making false statements and politicizing negotiations over funding two school resource officers assigned to the high school and middle school.

Public meetings

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Obituaries

Stanley J. Nabrezny, 82

Diane Gail Palumbo, 83

Joseph S. Suspenski, 97

Ernest L. Albee, 65

John M. Shuot, 79