Word has finally come of a planned closure of the Kmart store at the Bridgehampton (N.Y.) Commons center. When this occurs next month, Kmart’s remaining presence in the continental U.S. will be nearly gone, but the other story here is what becomes of the giant commercial space in increasingly tony Bridgehampton. Word is it willContinue reading “Kmart Goes the Way of the Old Hamptons”
Category Archives: Hamptons Land
50 Years On, Is Caro’s Word on Robert Moses To Be the Last?
Robert Caro has gone on to greater national fame with his (still in the works) biographies of Lyndon Johnson. But in the New York area, particularly, he is renowned for his work, The Power Broker, about local planning czar Robert Moses. It is the 50th anniversary of the publication of that Pulitzer Prize-winning book, whichContinue reading “50 Years On, Is Caro’s Word on Robert Moses To Be the Last?”
Why the Hamptons Has No Bike Path Like This
Go to many affluent communities in North America and you notice some kind of safe cycling path. Not on the South Fork of Long Island. You do see, outside of winter, some intrepid bicyclists—occasionally I am one. A few streets have designated bike lanes, where vehicles shouldn’t be blocking, but rarely do these extend forContinue reading “Why the Hamptons Has No Bike Path Like This”
Hampton Jitney’s Tale Is LIRR’s Shame
The East Hampton Star this week adds to the 50-year commemorations of seminal events on the East End of Long Island in the early 1970s, when its transition to being a weekend and warm-weather retreat for ordinary (but affluent) New Yorkers kicked in. This short article’s focus is the Hampton Jitney, the preferred connection forContinue reading “Hampton Jitney’s Tale Is LIRR’s Shame”
When Anti-Mansionization Isn’t Just Meddling
The Wall Street Journal is catching up with the movement in the Hamptons and elsewhere to contain the maximum size of homes. This week’s article focuses on the aesthetic and probably sociological objections to the mansions (the biggest ones aren’t really “McMansions” because they are built to a scale that is not…er, scalable). In response,Continue reading “When Anti-Mansionization Isn’t Just Meddling”
Taking Hamptons Traffic Seriously
Here’s a “letter to the editor” from me, published this week at the Southampton Press site. It concerns the worsening traffic situation on the South Fork of Long Island, not only the backups on the primary east-west arteries, but the onslaught of diverted traffic onto residential roads (including–no surprise–mine). I make reference to some renderingsContinue reading “Taking Hamptons Traffic Seriously”
Arf! Arf! Is a Hamptons Sound
Among the many 50-year milestones being observed in “the Hamptons” over the last year or two–reflective of the fundamental changes that were taking place there in the early 1970s–is a four-legged one. This golden anniversary year for the Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons (ARF), now a celebrated (and sometimes celebrity) charity, will culminate inContinue reading “Arf! Arf! Is a Hamptons Sound”
Bedroom Reform for Today’s Housing Crisis
Long Island, N.Y.’s East End has a housing price/supply crunch, like the United Kingdom. So it might want to look at an earnest argument out of the UK for addressing the scarcity by restricting or reallocating bedroom supply. (See this derivative blog post.) The scholars there found no actual shortfall of home square-footage in theContinue reading “Bedroom Reform for Today’s Housing Crisis”
Last Shot at New Golf in Greater Hamptons
When an 18-hole golf club—private and exclusive—opens in the next couple of years at the controversial Lewis Road luxury development in East Quogue, it will mark the latest and probably the last of 135 years of links building on and around the South Fork of Long Island. This will bring to 20 the number ofContinue reading “Last Shot at New Golf in Greater Hamptons”
Hamptons Farmland: A Death and a Legacy
A significant but underappreciated aspect of the South Fork of Long Island land-preservation story is the role that old farming families have played. This is particularly true of the Polish clans that so prominently figured in the agricultural belt below the moraine that runs along the Water Mill to Bridgehampton stretch, some of the mostContinue reading “Hamptons Farmland: A Death and a Legacy”
Tim W. Ferguson 