County Road 39 Sidewalk Project Delayed to 2027; 'Absurd' North Sea Road Sidewalk Plan Decried by CAC - 27 East

County Road 39 Sidewalk Project Delayed to 2027; 'Absurd' North Sea Road Sidewalk Plan Decried by CAC

icon 3 Photos
A sidewalk project proposed by the Suffolk County Department of Public Words on County Road 38, also known as North Sea Road, is raising eyebrows, and ire, in the community.   KITTY MERRILL

A sidewalk project proposed by the Suffolk County Department of Public Words on County Road 38, also known as North Sea Road, is raising eyebrows, and ire, in the community. KITTY MERRILL

The years-long County Road 39 sidewalk project proposed by the Suffolk Department of Public Works will be deferred until 2027, according to a document provided to Southampton Town officials.    DANA SHAW

The years-long County Road 39 sidewalk project proposed by the Suffolk Department of Public Works will be deferred until 2027, according to a document provided to Southampton Town officials. DANA SHAW

The years-long County Road 39 sidewalk project proposed by the Suffolk Department of Public Works will be deferred until 2027, according to a document provided to Southampton Town officials.    DANA SHAW

The years-long County Road 39 sidewalk project proposed by the Suffolk Department of Public Works will be deferred until 2027, according to a document provided to Southampton Town officials. DANA SHAW

Kitty Merrill on Apr 19, 2023

Rebuked by locals as “tone deaf” and “a sidewalk to nowhere,” the two-year, $9.6 million Suffolk County Department of Public Works plan to add sidewalks on both sides of County Road 39 has been put off until 2027, according to documents provided by Southampton Town officials.

The project was originally slated to start this fall, with sidewalks and road improvements slated for a 1.9-mile stretch of the busy highway, from Tuckahoe Road to Boathouse Road.

Following a March 6 Zoom teleconference, during which county staff revealed the plan, Town Engineer Thomas Houghton sent an array of questions to the county’s director of highway engineering, Jeffrey Dawson.

Buried among technical responses about lane closures and cones is one sentence that might bring relief to weary commuters girding their loins for added congestion on the town’s busiest thoroughfare: “The county will defer the CR 39 project to fall 2027, with construction extending to fall 2029.”

While an advisory was sent out by County Legislator Bridget Fleming’s office a week ahead of the teleconference, the March 6 meeting itself was sparsely attended.

Councilwoman Cynthia McNamara, in a March 13 missive to the legislator, said, “I am completely dismayed that the town was not included in the planning of a $9.6 million project that will further impact traffic. At a minimum, the county should have sought input from the Southampton Town highway superintendent, the Southampton Town police chief and our town engineer. These are the individuals who know this area best and will be managing the day-to-day issues caused by lane closures on the busiest traveled roadway in our town for the next two years. The fact that none of them were included should trouble everyone.”

With a nod to the “trade parade” commute coupled with the seasonal surge in traffic, the initial plan called for complex time frames for the work. At no time would there be total lane closures, officials said. At least one lane in each direction would be open and construction wasn’t planned to commence until after peak commuter times.

Asked at the meeting to consider doing the entire project at night, Suffolk County Chief Engineer William Hillman said it could be considered if residents didn’t object to the noise. McNamara wrote, “It was stated on the Zoom that the county would need to poll the residents on this stretch of roadway before committing to night work. No one polled the businesses owners who will have their livelihoods impacted by this work for two years, or the thousands of commuters who will see their already difficult commute impacted further.

“As someone who has sat in standstill traffic at the canal in the afternoon on a weekday because of a single lane closure for tree-trimming, I can tell you unequivocally that there simply are no “off-peak” travel times during the day on CR 39.”

Subsequently responding to Houghton’s array of questions, which included a request for nighttime work, is a terse sentence, “The county is agreeable.”

On the heels of the debut of that sidewalk project, county officials held another Zoom teleconference on another project planned nearby — on North Sea Road. The county plans to embark on an effort to resurface North Sea Road. The project includes crafting continuous shoulders, sidewalks and curbing running from County Road 39 to Millstone Brook Road, where county jurisdiction ends, plus drainage improvements, traffic signal improvements, and rumble strips. It’s slated to begin in the fall of 2024, last through the spring of 2026, and comes with a $16.5 million price tag.

Held March 28, the meeting drew double the attendees of the earlier outing. Most opposed the notion of sidewalks along the road, seeing them as an urbanizing amenity in a rural environment.

A new, proposed light at the intersection of North Sea Road and North Sea-Mecox Road was also cause for consternation. North Sea Citizens Advisory Committee member Dieter von Lehsten said it’s “a totally stupid idea” to install a light when there’s another traffic signal at the merge of Sandy Hollow Road and North Sea Road “just a few feet away.”

The curbing that would be constructed with the sidewalks could be a disaster for businesses along North Sea Road, speakers said at the teleconference. The concern was reiterated when county officials subsequently met, virtually, with the CAC this month.

CAC member Barbara Fair noted, “Whether you like sidewalks or not, that part of the plan is absurd. Our businesses would be strangled.” Single access cuts into businesses would have been a “nonstarter” if county officials spoke with members of the community, or at least town officials, before crafting a plan.

Fair said Hillman was asked if he’d reached out to the business owners and replied, “We can’t talk to everybody.”

Confronted with a community distaste of urbanizing sidewalks, Hillman said the construction of sidewalks is a mandate of the county’s “Complete Streets” legislation. Passed by the Suffolk County Legislature in 2012, it requires the Department of Public Works to consider all modes of travel — driving, biking, and walking — in its project designs.

CAC members researched the law and pointed out sidewalks are preferred but not required in improvement designs. While the concept is fine, Fair said, it doesn’t reflect the local rural character. “There is a sense of place that’s precious to many of us,” she said.

There’s yet a third county project on the horizon for the Town of Southampton. Plans to rebuild the railroad bridge near Gravel Hill Road in Hampton Bays will warrant closure of Montauk Highway. Questioned about potential overlap and asked for details of the project during the March 6 teleconference, Hillman declined to offer insight.

In response to Houghton’s questions later that month, county officials wrote, “The North Sea Road project will begin fall 2024 and will last through spring 2026. The CR 80 (LIRR) bridge project will begin summer 2025. However, all work prior to the fall of 2026 will be below the bridge and not affect the operation of CR 80, Montauk Highway. The bridge work will be complete in spring 2027. The county has scheduled these projects to ensure they do not overlap, thereby reducing the impact to the public as much as possible.”

County officials did not respond to a telephone request for comment. Questions for Public Works Commissioner Joseph Brown had to be sent to an email address. No response was received by The Press as of Wednesday, April 19.

You May Also Like:

St. Mark's Episcopal Church Marks 100 Years of Serving Westhampton Beach

St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Westhampton Beach has been helping residents with matters of faith ... 6 Jul 2025 by Dan Stark

The New Standard

The editorial dunce cap for “creeping authoritarianism” [“Gold Stars and Dunce Caps,” Editorial, July 3] awarded to the president for his anger at the deliberate leak of a premature intelligence assessment by an individual acting solely out of malice in an attempt to discredit the administration’s recent outstanding U.S. military action in Iran: It certainly was in stark contrast to Joe Biden’s management of our withdrawal from Afghanistan that cost 13 Marines their lives and bore witness to an America that no longer would be held in respect for its ability to project power. The leak was a political stunt ... by Staff Writer

See the Reality

Magic acts are based on illusion and distraction. The audience is looking at the fancy handwork while things appear and disappear. Just so have the MAGA Republicans fooled the majority of their base. Being woke is the distraction — women who have abortions, people who are transgender, or gay, or pro-Palestinian, or illegal immigrants, or whatever else are the root of our problems. Mired in economic despair, people are somehow made to feel that massively wealthy people are their kin, not immigrants desperate for food and a roof over their heads. Here in the Hamptons, as in the bowels of ... by Staff Writer

Dodged a Bullet

After reading John Avlon’s “Viewpoint” [“Frustrated? Here Are Three Things You Can Do,” Opinion, July 3], Suffolk County was so right in not electing a candidate who projects misery, because the American voters see things differently than he does. Democrats seem to think democracy only works if they win — otherwise, its called fascism. John, you and the Democratic Party are not victims. The Democratic Party is dead in America. The fact that the Democratic Party elected a communist in New York City to represent the party is the cherry on top. America is not about free stuff — it’s ... by Staff Writer

Guided by Reason

I am writing in response to the recent multi-page Q&A article, “School Board Member: Students Shortchanged,” published in The Southampton Press on July 3. The piece presents a narrative about the Southampton School Board that is, at best, incomplete and at worst, misleading. While I respect the intent to spotlight district concerns, it’s troubling that no effort was made to verify the accuracy or context of statements, some directly or indirectly referencing me. The result is a divisive and unbalanced portrayal that undermines the board’s integrity and the community’s trust. Our residents deserve truthful dialogue, accurate reporting and responsible journalism. ... by Staff Writer

A Blight

Southampton Town now has four ugly, blighted properties: 7Zs Swimming Pool, Bel-Aire Cove Motel property, Getty gas station and the former Casa Basso Restaurant. The first three have been vacant for many years. They are a blight on our community. They look like Superfund sites. Casa Basso was purchased recently. We don’t understand why the town bought it when their priorities should have been fixing up, or beautifying, the first three first. Bel-Aire Cove is supposed to become a “passive park” with six parking spaces. If the park gets used or becomes successful, the town might add a bathroom and ... by Staff Writer

In Search of a Lyme Vaccine

Three decades ago, after writing about people undergoing severe cases of Lyme disease in Suffolk County, I chose to get shots of a vaccine that had just become available designed to prevent the disease happening after a bite of a Lyme-carrying tick. It was 1998, and what was called LYMErix was introduced that year to counter Lyme disease. I went to our family physician, Dr. Daniel Lessner in Sag Harbor, since retired, for a series of three vaccinations. There were no side effects. Making a judgment on a negative is problematic, but in following years, although bitten by ticks, I ... by Karl Grossman

'We Are All Jews Here'

Some of you may have noticed that often a “Road Yet Taken” column is tied to an anniversary. Not this time — for two reasons. One is, because of all the political divisiveness and especially antisemitism going around, I decided it was time to tell the story of someone who inspires us to be better people. Two: This is a salute to the folks who, Sunday after Sunday, in all kinds of weather, gather at the windmill in Sag Harbor to protest the violence in Gaza. Recently, a group supporting Israel has been having its own protest a few feet ... by Tom Clavin

Born in The Hamptons, 'Jaws' Turns 50

It is the summer of “Jaws,” and many are wondering whether 50 years is long ... 5 Jul 2025 by Michael Wright

East End Historical Societies and Museums Join Forces for Long Island History Hunt

Long Island museums and historical societies have teamed up to host the Long Island History ... 4 Jul 2025 by Dan Stark