The local chapter of the League of Women Voters presents Supervisor Gerry Siller on the State of Town, held this year at the Shelter Island Public Library.
The talk — part of the library’s Friday Night Dialogues series — takes place on Friday, May 13 at 7 PM in a hybrid format. You can attend the library’s lower-level Community Room presentation or join via Zoom. Visit the library’s online calendar to register.
The LWV — officially the League of Women Voters of the Hamptons, Shelter Island, and the North Fork — will feature Siller for the annual report on the Town.
Past supervisors gave State of the Town talks during a luncheon at one of the Island’s restaurants. Waylaid by the pandemic for two years, the LWV is reviving the tradition at the library.
Having first served as Supervisor from 1998 to 2001, Siller won the seat again in 2019 and was re-elected in November for a second two-year term with solid voter support.
He’s often commented that even after so many years, the same issues he worked on during his first tenure top the Town’s agenda. They include questions about water, housing, and deer/ticks.
Since he took office, the Town Board has:
- developed and is implementing an extensive Ground and Surface Water Management Plan
- proposed a wastewater treatment facility for eight municipal buildings in the Center, where high nitrates are affecting drinking water quality
- arranged to transfer management of the West Neck Water system to the Suffolk County Water Authority, improving water quality and delivery more affordably than anticipated under continued Town management
- established a Community Housing Fund as a nest egg to preserve and expand affordable housing opportunities
- proposed legislation to enable the transfer of development rights in support of Community Housing
- created a Community Housing Fund Advisory Board to research and write a Town housing plan and educate the public about the upcoming referendum on a 0.5 percent real estate transfer tax to fund Community Housing in each of the five East End towns
- convened (and then reconvened) a Comprehensive Plan Advisory Committee to update the Town’s baseline planning document (which was last officially revised in 1994)
- pivoted deer/tick management to emphasize hunting and public education after state rule changes forced discontinuation of the 4-poster program that applied tick repellent to deer at feeding stations
- conducted a thorough study of the Town’s shoreline access points and enacted new rules to ensure fair use of these vital public resources
- oversaw a review of the Shelter Island Police Department as part of a statewide effort in the wake of the George Floyd killing and ensuing protests
- managed the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including mass local vaccine distribution in cooperation with Stony Brook Southampton Hospital
As with any messy political process, things haven’t always gone smoothly — after all, there’s no shortage of opinions on Shelter Island. But Siller has soldiered on amid all manner of controversies.
All are welcome to attend the State of Town on May 13 at 7 PM. Hear the supervisor’s perspective on how the Town addresses these issues and more, and take advantage of this opportunity to ask questions.
Next Up: “Everyday Pilgrimage” with The Rev. Stephen Adkison Ph.D., pastor of Shelter Island Presbyterian Church, Friday, May 20 at 7 PM
Marie Bishko is a Trustee of the Shelter Island Public Library.
