When Santa Claus visited Long Wharf on Dec. 9 as part of the Sag Harbor Chamber of Commerce’s tree-lighting festivities, what families may not have known was that the man originally slated to play the role, Ken Dorph, had been asked to return his red suit to the chamber three days earlier.  

By Christopher Gangemi

Representative Nick LaLota of New York’s First Congressional District supports the impeachment inquiry targeting President Biden and blames both Democrats and extremists in his own party for congressional dysfunction in 2023, as he prepares to seek re-election next November.

By Christopher Walsh

A replay of the 2022 effort to redraw New York State’s congressional district maps may this time hand Democrats an advantage in next year’s elections, as the State Court of Appeals voted 4 to 3 last week to order the redrawing of the maps. 

By Christopher Walsh

Aidan Corish and Bob Plumb were spooked by draft legislation introduced before an affordable housing workshop that would create an Affordable Workforce Housing Zoning District “floating zone,” with one calling it “a powerful and potentially damaging tool.”

By Christopher Gangemi

The New York State Public Service Commission has once again ruled against Sag Harbor Village, in a last-minute denial of the village’s request to rehear its July decision allowing KeySpan Gas East Corporation to lease the so-called “gas ball lot” to the developer Adam Potter.

By Christopher Gangemi

The year 2026 is the latest projected date that Suffolk County plans to repave Three Mile Harbor Road, also known as County Road 40. Now the town is considering adding a roundabout to the project.

By Christopher Walsh

The East Hampton Village Board is considering using cameras on village roads that would photograph license plates of speeding vehicles and generate either a ticket or a warning that would be mailed to the vehicle’s owner.

By Christopher Gangemi

A unique collaboration among students, teachers, and parents at the John M. Marshall Elementary School and the Springs School resulted in the sending of 430 handmade holiday cards to active service members of the United States Armed Forces.

By Christine Sampson

The plan to remove invasive vegetative species at the Benson reserve in Montauk, which calls for the use of 12 to 15 goats as well as machinery, has split residents of the hamlet. With that in mind, the East Hampton Town Board held another substantial discussion of the proposal.

By Christopher Walsh

Even though clearing for the new East Hampton Town Senior Citizens Center on Abraham’s Path in Amagansett is to begin next month, its design, features, and cost have been drawing scrutiny; and, now, potential zoning exemptions for the project are being debated, too.

By Christopher Walsh

Concerned Citizens of Montauk has appointed Kay Tyler, who previously served as the organization’s director of development and marketing, as its executive director.



By Christopher Walsh

Robin Murphy was elected Dec. 12 to the office of fire commissioner in the Bridgehampton Fire District. Voters also overwhelmingly approved changes to the Length of Service Award Program.



By Christine Sampson

Pat Mansir, who served three terms on the East Hampton Town Board and had a reputation reflecting her “willingness to think for herself,” died on Dec. 10 of complications of heart disease. She was 77.



By Star Staff

Andrew Strong, described by his family as “a father who found his greatest contentment raising his three children, a husband married to his best friend and soulmate, a beloved friend, and a lawyer who fought for justice, human rights, and freedom,” died of a heart attack on Dec. 11 in The Hague. Formerly of East Hampton, he was 43.



By Star Staff

Newsday announced that Emma McGrory, a senior midfielder on Bonac’s playoff field hockey squad, has been named to its 12-player all-Long Island team, and tiny Bridgehampton High’s boys basketball team beat Riverhead — a rarity.



By Jack Graves

Padel, a racket sport new to America, but not to Mexico, South America, and Europe, will be added to the East Hampton Indoor/Outdoor Club’s list of offerings come the spring.



By Jack Graves

Colin Mather has plunged on New Year’s Day for years, jogging the 1.6 miles to the ocean at the end of Beach Lane with whoever shows up at his Wainscott shop. His plunges have been more low-key than those at East Hampton’s Main Beach, but this year will be different.



By Jack Graves

Now ensconced on Amagansett’s Main Street, Rowdy Hall still has wonderful French onion soup, impressive salads, terrific burgers and fish and chips, affordable prices, and throngs of happy customers.

By Laura Donnelly

From The Star’s photo archive, this Christmas card sent by Lion Gardiner (1878-1936) and Ida S. Loomis Gardiner (1881-1973) shows the Gardiner House on Ocean Avenue covered in snow.   

By Andrea Meyer

Electing an American president was Rupert Murdoch’s dream turned nightmare, Michael Wolff writes in his gossipy, occasionally obscene account of power and politics, “The Fall.” 

Reviewed by David M. Alpern