FAQ’s

Is the Hither Woods Sewage Treatment Plant about Montauk Growth?

YES, Absolutely!

The Scope of Work (RFP EH2020-101) provided by the town identifying the objectives for the H2M Report specifically define Montauk “growth” as the central purpose of the Sewage Treatment Proposal. Growth is mentioned and discussed fifteen times as shown her

East Hampton RFP calls out “Growth” 15 times 

as the prime objective of the Sewer Proposal.

As the H2M Report-Rev 2 report states in section 3.2, East Hampton Town purposely did NOT allow any other consideration be given to other "alternative water treatment” systems because it would limit growth! WOW - what an admission !!! If anyone tells you that this sewer district is not about promoting more growth and development in Downtown Montauk, this sentence screams it aloud.

H2M Report- Rev 2, Sec 3.2, No alternate systems were considered.

Not only did the Town not consider alternatives, they also wanted the proposed Sewage Treatment Plant to contain provisions for an additional growth of 42%. That’s right, the proposed plant of 300,000 gpd has a built in growth factor already. The town is advocating growth in downtown Montauk!

H2M Report- Rev 2, Sec 2.2, Town requires additional growth of 42% for downtown Montauk.

Once the downtown business wastewater treatment is mitigated by the Hither Woods Sewage Treatment Plant then the Suffolk County Health Department regulations are addressed.  The only thing remaining to block Montauk expansion is the East Hampton town zoning code, and that can be changed. 

Will the East Hampton town code be changed to allow expansion of certain businesses in downtown Montauk? We don’t know for sure, but we need to look no further than the 1980’s when the East Hampton Town Board voted to abolish the Town Planning Department. 

And for further evidence to illustrate the contempt that Peter Van Scoyoc seems to show for Hither Woods parkland…In 2019 the Town tried to push PSEG Long Island into putting a power substation on County parkland in Hither Woods, just northwest of where the STP is now proposed. This would have entailed building a major access road more than 1/4 mile long into the park, then clear-cutting two acres of land for the electric substation - right next to the Paumanok Path just before it reaches the Laurel Canyon Trail! This was supposedly because the Town wanted to keep the substation away from rising sea levels.  It didn’t occur because of “push-back” which forced them to consider other options.  They finally settled on an industrial site off Industrial Road.

The East Hampton Town plan for Montauk is to embrace more development and growth. Other northeast communities such as Cape Cog and western Long Island are now realizing what that increased growth has cost them in terms traffic, noise, crime, and money. Montauk and East Hampton Town can learn much from the harm growth has caused other towns and arrest any further development plans – now is the time to just say NO to further growth in Montauk.