The New York Times has published yet another article about how much the Hamptons have “changed”. The press has long been fascinated with this bucolic cluster of small hamlets at the easternmost tip of Long Island, 100 miles from New York City. The white sand beaches, the brilliant natural light, the lush landscapes–and the dancing all night at Shagwong bar in Montauk –all have attracted the throngs for decades. I made East Hampton my home permanently in 1972, when I moved my young family out of New York City. My late wife and I lived the dream. Despite the articles proclaiming the demise of that Hamptons dream, I find that today the Hamptons are not really that different than they were in 1968, when we first found a weekend home on Egypt Lane. Certainly, there are more cars on the road, generated by the tenfold increase in new houses and resulting population explosion. Yet the character of the place has not changed. There is still a vibrant community of “locals” who enjoy a small town neighborliness. Maybe the fact that many of the mom-n-pop shops on Main Street have been replaced by national brand retailers is disappointing to some. There is no longer Marleys Stationery or Whites drugstore. Yet the traffic cop is most likely a local kid, and most of the staff in the shops, the schoolteachers, firemen and many of the doctors, lawyers and other professionals are all fulltime residents here. Like me, they would rather be out here than in New York City. So what makes the Hamptons appear to be so different now? It has to be more than the retail establishment and the population increase. Perhaps the push and pull between the locals who want things to be as it was before the onslaught of development versus the newbies who want pickleball and more bedrooms added on to their already sizeable homes. Nevertheless, the Hamptons remain special because of the vast open spaces and beaches that are protected in perpetuity. Back in the 1970’s large swaths of land were set aside by people who understood what was happening and a moratorium stopped all development. A not so local new Supervisor, Judith Hope, sought and succeeded in slowing down uncontrolled home building. Thousands of acres of vacant land were set aside and the rules governing future expansion were tightened. Today we all benefit from these rules. Sure, there is more traffic as one drives the roads and lanes in the Hamptons. And yes you need a reservation now at The Grill, but there is still room at Main Beach and one can get a lobster roll at Lunch on the highway and if you’re lucky the local traffic kid will give you a pass for overstaying the time limit parked on Main Street.
The birds were chirping away this morning. The walkers and runners were on Further Lane at sunup. Coffee was ready at Poxabogue at 6:30am, and where breakfast is served all day. It is the weekend and I plan to go on a swim, wash my car, take a ride to Northwest Harbor in the morning and then a barbeque at my daughter’s home. The only thing changed for me is my age.
