A code amendment to eliminate seasonal nonresident parking permits for use at Riverhead Town beaches, parks and playgrounds was the subject of a public hearing before the Riverhead Town Board Wednesday afternoon.
The proposal drew one comment from the public, from Jamesport resident Robert Skinner, a member of the town’s beach committee, who spoke in support of the amendment.
“We’re not making any more beaches. We’re not making any more parking spaces at the beaches. But there certainly are a large number of housing units on the docket right now.” Skinner said. “Anybody saw what Iron Pier looked like on Sunday afternoon?” he asked, referring to the Iron Pier town beach. “In not too long a period of time, it’s going to be to the point where there won’t be a place to park.”
Board members then engaged in an extended discussion of how to solve a problem that’s already addressed in the town code: permits for senior citizens and handicapped residents who don’t have their own vehicles and want to have someone take them to a town beach or park.
Councilman Ken Rothwell brought the issue up when Supervisor Yvette Aguiar asked, following Skinner’s comments, whether any board members had any comments. He said the daughter of a senior resident reached out to him about it.
“She likes to go to her mother’s house and bring lunch, pick her up, and they drive down to the beach, and will sit at the beach. How does it affect someone of that nature where she would no longer be able to buy a beach pass? And her mother, who is in fact a Riverhead Town resident, would no longer be able to go to the beach,” he said.
After some discussion among board members, Deputy Town Attorney Annemarie Prudenti pointed out the code revision before the board dealt with nonresident seasonal permits only and the matter of issuing resident parking permits to people without their own vehicles is something that would have to be dealt with separately in the town code.
The town code in fact already addresses the issue. It provides for the issuance of a “Senior citizen/handicapped seasonal resident identification permit” by the town recreation department to senior citizens or handicapped residents who do not drive and need someone else to take them to the beach. The ID permit cards will “grant access to any vehicle as long as the person (to whom it is issued) is a passenger in the car,” according to §211-14(B)(2) of the town code. The senior citizen or handicapped resident must produce a photo ID to the beach attendant to gain access to the parking lot. The fee for the ID permit is set by resolution of the Town Board, the code states.
Earlier this year, the Town Board suspended the issuance of nonresident daily parking permits for 2022, a policy adopted in the past two years due to the COVID pandemic.
In other action at its meeting Wednesday, the board:
Granted final site plan approval to the application of 205 Osborn to build a five-story mixed-use building on the corner of Osborn Avenue and Court Street, the first development project to move forward in the Railroad Avenue Overlay District enacted last year. The board also extended the boundary of the Riverhead Parking District to include the site of the new development.
Assumed lead agency and issued a negative declaration for the special permit and site plan applications of Dries-Specchio Factory Outlet Stores, proposed for an undeveloped four-acre property between the existing Tanger I and Tanger II outlet centers. The negative declaration represents the board’s decision that the project is not anticipated to have significant negative environmental impacts and does not require the preparation of an environmental impact statement. The board also scheduled a public hearing on the special permit application for July 19 at 2:05 p.m.
[See prior coverage: Plans for independent outlet between Tanger properties return to Town Board]
Amended the town’s outdoor dining code to extend the duration of the revocable outdoor dining permits from one year to four years.
Terminated the town’s agreement with AKRF, the planning consultants hired in 2019 to handle the town’s comprehensive plan update.
Approved several special events applications, including Long Ireland Beer Company’s “HalfWay to St. Patrick’s Day (Sept. 17); Garden of Eve’s Garlic Festival (Sept. 10-11 and 17-18); Chicken Kidz Consignment Sale at Polish Hall (Oct. 11-16); and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s Cycle for Life (Aug. 20).
The board also ratified the appointment of a new budget officer/chief of staff in the town supervisor’s office, Debi Burkowsky, effective July 5. Burkowsky will be paid an annual salary of $64,000 plus benefits according to an employment contract approved by the board Wednesday.
Burkowsky is the fourth person to hold the chief of staff position in Aguiar’s office, succeeding Dawn Brie, who was hired on March 16. Deputy Tax Receiver Lisa Richards held the position from February 2020 until last November, when she assumed her current post in the tax receiver’s office. Deputy Supervisor Devon Higgins was initially appointed chief of staff and was named Aguiar’s deputy after the supervisor’s initial pick for deputy, Denise Merrified, resigned after a few weeks on the job.
Alek Lewis contributed reporting.
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