Talking Up Land Use Changes in Southold

Perhaps the most contentious part of any comprehensive plan is the section that advocates for zoning changes, and Southold Town’s planning department is getting citizens ready for the unveiling this fall of the land use chapter of their plan.

Town planners have begun making the rounds of hamlets throughout Southold in the first phase of their effort to get the word out about the chapter. The series of forums, titled “Land Use and Zoning 101,” will focus on the way each hamlet compares to the town overall, using statistics ranging from the percentage of seasonal and year-round homes, population, and commercial and residential land use.

The second set of forums will be to review the draft land use chapter, which is due out in the fall.

The comprehensive plan, called “Southold 2020,” has been underway for about four years, in which time the town’s planning department has compiled nine chapters on how residents would like different aspects of the town to change over the next several years.

The land use chapter is nearly the final chapter in the plan, with only sections on infrastructure and transportation left to be completed.

Hamlet meetings will be held tonight, May 12 at 7:30 p.m. at the Peconic Lane Community Center, May 17 at 10 a.m. at the town Human Resources Center in Mattituck; May 22 at 7:30 p.m. at Southold Town Hall, June 5 at 7:30 p.m. at the Cutchogue East Elementary School, June 14 at 10 a.m. at Poquatuck Hall in Orient and June 28 at 10 a.m. at the New Suffolk School. Meetings in Greenport, East Marion and on Fishers Island were held earlier this year.

Drafts of completed chapters and extensive information on the comprehensive plan is available on the town website here.