Recruiting Volunteers for a Westhampton Beach Sewer Vote

The Westhampton Beach Village Board is using a permissive referendum to fund a $17 million sewer system for Main Street. That means we WHB taxpayers do not get to vote on this capital project unless we force a vote with a petition.

Is the cost worth the benefit of a 2% reduction in nitrogen in the three bays bordering Main Street? Taxpayers who help fund the system cannot connect their homes to the 2.6+ miles of sewer pipe, so who is benefiting from the sewer system? If it's a Main Street bailout, as it appears to be, let Main Street pay for it with their possible increased tenancy and increased building values.

Timing is critical. Once the trustees pass a resolution to fund the $17 million project—and we don’t know when that will be—we have exactly 30 days to obtain approximately 300 signatures from registered WHB voters to force a vote.

There is significant opposition and a group has formed. We must act quickly when the Village Board passes a resolution to fund the sewer system. Again, we do not know when that will be and we will have only a 30 day window.

We can always use more volunteers to help get petition signatures; you do not have to be a WHB voter to collect signatures. If you are interested in getting involved or in just being available to sign a possible petition (signatures must be from registered WHB voters), please contact Sabina Trager at strager@optonline.net. Thank you.