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Southampton Town Highway Superintendent Charles McArdle discusses plans for the intersection of Noyac and Long Beach roads with the Noyac Civic Council. STEPHEN J. KOTZ
Westbound traffic on Noyac Road, like the vehicle pictured above, would have a stop sign just before Long Beach Road in Noyac under a plan proposed by Southampton Town Highway Superintendent Charles McArdle. STEPHEN J. KOTZ
Westbound traffic on Noyac Road, like the vehicleS pictured above, would have a stop sign just before Long Beach Road in Noyac under a plan proposed by Southampton Town Highway Superintendent Charles McArdle. STEPHEN J. KOTZ
There has been talk of converting the difficult intersection of Noyac Road and Long Beach Road in Noyac into a roundabout for years. But while that plan may or may not ever come to fruition, Southampton Town Highway Superintendent Charles McArdle offered members of the Noyac Civic Council on February 12 a cheaper and easier fix — in the form of a stop sign.
McArdle said the sign would be placed on an island alongside the westbound lane of Noyac Road. It would allow eastbound traffic to turn left onto Long Beach Road, while still enabling westbound traffic to turn right onto Long Beach Road without stopping.
McArdle said Suffolk County, which would share at least some of the cost of the project because Long Beach Road is a county road, is resistant to the idea of a roundabout, because it would be expensive, but that it had signed off on the addition of a stop sign.
“It’s a quick answer, and it could solve the problem,” he said.
Several members of the small audience initially objected to the idea, pointing out that traffic is bad in all directions at the intersection and that a more comprehensive solution is needed.
McArdle urged patience. He said the town believes that eastbound traffic on Noyac Road is heavier than westbound traffic, though he conceded that the stop sign might cause westbound traffic to back up in the afternoon, as workers head home.
“This is something we can try,” he said. “If I come back in a year and you say, ‘Charlie, you blew it,’ we can yank it out.”
Suffolk County Legislator Ann Welker, who also attended the event, said the stop sign was the best possible solution for now.
“I think we try this. This is something we can do now. It doesn’t cost a lot of money,” she said. “The county works slowly. There is no plan to do anything coming from Long Beach Road. There is no design. There is nothing in the capital budget now.”
Noyac Road Work Slated
McArdle also announced that the Town Board had approved a $9 million, three-year plan to repave Noyac Road.
This spring, the section from North Sea Road to Deerfield Road will be done, and next year, a second section, from Sag Harbor Village westward, will be completed. That project will extend south along a portion of Stony Hill Road near the Serene Green farmstand and west to the Long Beach intersection, if not farther, but McArdle said he did not know exactly where that phase would end.
The final portion of the paving project will be completed in 2026, he said.
McArdle also had good news about the intersection of Noyac and Stony Hill roads at the Serene Green farm stand. The plan, he said, is to transform it into a T-intersection, with stop signs in all directions. As part of the project, the sharp right turn that the westbound lane of Noyac Road makes will be straightened and a stop sign installed. A stop sign will also be placed in the southbound lane of Noyac Road, as well as the northbound lane of Stony Hill Road.
But McArdle was noncommittal about a plan to install sidewalks along a portion of Noyac Road, saying that although the town has received federal funding for the project, designs must be approved and local residents brought on board with the plan.
Updates Offered
Welker also gave a brief update on several county initiatives. One, she said, is a state effort to connect the Long Island Rail Road from the Ronkonkoma station to MacArthur Airport in Islip, which, she said, is the third-highest ranked small airport in the country.
The county is also working on legislation to protect “working waterfront,” which, she said, is modeled after a program in Maine to protect its coastline for commercial fishermen and lobstermen. She said Suffolk County is also looking for ways to protect small marinas so they are not replaced by developments such as condominiums.
Finally, she said the county will partner with Southampton Town and Southampton Village to hold a veterans resources fair, including mental health information, at the Southampton Cultural Center on Saturday, March 8. She noted that Suffolk County has more veterans than any other county in the state.
Town Councilman Michael Iasilli, who lives in Noyac, also gave a brief report. He said the traffic mitigation and safety task force he formed, which is co-chaired by McArdle, has been making good progress with placing speed monitors and noted that Town Police are also stepping up their enforcement of speeding across town.
Iasilli also said that the Town Board has mandated lower light levels on commercial buildings to reduce light pollution; had adopted a leash law, requiring dog owners to leash their pets when off their property; and had set up a $1.2 million down payment assistance program for the Community Housing Fund.
