Council approves $727,850 equipment lease

Town Council · Meeting of September 22, 2026

EAST HAMPTON — The East Hampton Town Council approved a $727,850 equipment lease and a new three-year supervisors' union contract while fighting over minutes language. The council voted 7-0 to finance six capital items, including a $235,850 Memorial School boiler and a $150,000 Middle School HVAC unit, and ratified the Municipal Employees Union Independent Town Supervisors contract 7-0, which includes 3 percent annual raises through 2029. A 6-1 vote, with Council Member Ted Hintz Jr. opposed, struck italicized language from the August 11 minutes describing a resident's speaking time, which Hintz called "a form of intimidation." The council set an October 13 public hearing on Agriculture Commission membership changes and approved $2,378.07 in tax refunds.

Facing a Transfer Station funding gap that Public Works Director Matt Walsh said will exhaust the budget by early 2027, members withdrew a motion for a public hearing and instead directed staff to schedule a public workshop, tentatively in early November.

In the full story:

• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 2,230 words

Source: the Town Council meeting of September 22, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

The Full Article

Minutes Dispute: Striking Language About a Public Speaker

The meeting's first substantive conflict arose over approval of the August 11, 2026 minutes, which Chairman Dean Markham's council had asked staff to revise after a contentious exchange involving resident Becky Abbott during two public-comment periods that night. Executive Assistant to the Town Council Cathy Sirois added italicized language specifying that Abbott spoke for 3 minutes 25 seconds in the first session and 4 minutes 25 seconds in the second, and that Markham interrupted her to warn against disparaging a council member.

The question before the council was whether to approve the minutes with that language intact, strike it, or find another way to flag the revision. Vice Chairman Jack Solomon moved to approve the minutes "as revised." Council Member Richard Knotek then moved to amend that motion to remove the italicized language entirely from both the August 11 and September 8 minutes, calling the practice "intimidating" because it singled out one speaker by name while, he said, the council had tolerated ruder remarks from others over six months of meetings without similar notation.

Council Member Ted Hintz Jr. pressed the opposite case, asking whether any minutes in his tenure on the council had ever named a specific speaker this way. Other members acknowledged they could not recall a precedent beyond a prior town manager's report referencing a resident's driveway-plowing complaint, which did not name the resident.

"If you're going to do that, shouldn't everything that goes to the town clerk within seven days be [marked] as unofficial minutes because they have not been approved by the town council?" [00:05:18] — Ted Hintz Jr., Council Member.

Town Manager David Cox explained that Connecticut's Freedom of Information Commission requires minutes be filed within seven days of a meeting, often before the body reviewing them has met again, and that the town's practice has been to note corrections in the subsequent meeting's minutes rather than reissue a formally "revised" document. Several members, including Hintz, said that practice effectively buries corrections where most residents would never find them.

The amendment to strike the italicized language passed 6-1, with Hintz against. The council then approved the amended August 11 minutes by voice vote and separately approved the September 8 minutes as written, 7-0. The exchange prompted the council to later direct its bylaws subcommittee, chaired by Council Member Joelyn Leon, to review how minutes are revised and whether a Freedom of Information Commission workshop should be scheduled for all town boards and commissions — a request also raised during public comment by resident Cynthia Abraham, who said commissions such as the Firehouse Site & Development Committee do not consistently offer public comment periods.

Plan of Conservation and Development: Opening the Comment Period

Tuesday's meeting formally opened the public comment period on the draft 2026 Plan of Conservation and Development, which runs through the end of October under direction from the town's Land Use Department. A Planning and Zoning Commission public hearing on the final document is expected near the end of the year, according to the town manager's September 17 memo.

Kim Crabbe, a member of the POCD Steering Committee since its first meeting on May 1, 2025, told the council the draft reflects 16 months of outreach involving roughly 23 representatives from town boards and commissions, neighborhood meetings, a community survey, focus groups and a visioning session, led by former Town Planner Juliet Hodge. Crabbe said the plan's "implementation scorecard," which assigns responsibility for each objective to a specific town department or board, distinguishes the 2026 draft from the 2006 and 2016 versions, several of whose recommendations were never acted on.

Bill Parker, a Main Street resident, and Cindy Craig, another Steering Committee member, echoed support, with Parker praising the plan's "specific action steps" and deliverables under each of its seven goals. Crystal Chan raised more pointed questions, noting that the document uses "rural" and "small-town character" in ways she said have previously been equated with blocking all development, when she reads the POCD as calling for "responsible development" concentrated in the village center. Chan also said she could not find clear connectivity between the plan's goal six and goal seven sections on schools and infrastructure.

Later in the meeting, a council member asked whether the body is required to formally endorse the POCD before it proceeds to the Planning and Zoning Commission, which must adopt it by a two-thirds vote if the council does not act. Town Planner staff on the call indicated an endorsement vote is not yet scheduled and would appear on a future agenda, with the Planning and Zoning Commission's formal public hearing anticipated in December after review by the Connecticut regional council of governments. No endorsement vote was taken Tuesday.

Collective Bargaining Agreement: MEUI Town Supervisors

The council also considered a three-year successor contract with the Municipal Employees Union Independent (MEUI), Local 506, covering roughly nine supervisory positions including the library director, assessor, town clerk, and collector of revenue, among others. The agreement, retroactive to July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2029, had already been ratified by union members and discussed with the council in prior executive sessions, according to the September 17 staff memo.

Town Manager Cox summarized the changes: 3 percent general wage increases in each of the three contract years, additional market-rate salary adjustments for the assessor and program coordinator positions, an expanded paid-time-off accrual schedule matching other supervisory employees, and a new annual stipend for supervisors who earn outside professional certifications, mirroring a benefit already extended to the town's NAGE bargaining unit. A separate question about modifying the holiday schedule around Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve was not included in this agreement and will be negotiated separately with other unions.

During review, Hintz flagged a provision in Article XI requiring a physician's note before an employee could receive holiday pay while out sick, saying state law may no longer permit employers to require such documentation. Cox said the provision was "historic language" and staff would confirm it complies with current law before execution. Hintz also noted a stray punctuation error on page 12 and a technical question about whether Article XV's pre-tax retirement contribution should be described as an employee election rather than automatic. Cox agreed to address both points administratively.

The council approved the agreement 7-0, with the understanding that the town manager would correct the flagged items before signing.

Lease Purchase Resolution: $727,850 for Six Items

The council then took up a resolution authorizing the town manager and finance director to negotiate lease-purchase financing of up to $727,850 for six capital items approved in the fiscal year 2027 Capital Improvement Plan: a $35,000 building department vehicle, a $235,850 Memorial School boiler, a $150,000 Middle School gym HVAC replacement, a $62,000 fire command vehicle, a $130,000 Public Works truck and a $115,000 Public Works Bobcat. The town has budgeted $115,000 for the first year's lease payment; annual payments are expected to range between roughly $90,000 and $122,000 depending on the term, which cannot exceed 10 years.

Hintz asked whether leasing carried any warranty advantage over outright purchase and raised a cost concern: if financing rates rose significantly, paying 10 to 12 percent interest on a lease while the town earns only 5 to 6 percent on its reserves would not make financial sense, particularly for smaller items like the $35,000 vehicle. He said he had already discussed the concern informally with Finance Director Jeff, whose surname did not appear in the meeting record. Cox and the finance director confirmed the resolution only authorizes negotiation within stated parameters and does not commit the town to a specific rate or term; if terms proved unfavorable, staff would return to the council before finalizing any lease. The council approved the resolution 7-0.

Agriculture Commission Ordinance: Public Hearing Set for October 13

The Agriculture Commission, since its appointment, has reviewed its own enabling ordinance and recommended eliminating the requirement that three nonvoting youth members under 18 serve on the commission, which members said had been difficult to fill and risked leaving seats vacant. The proposed ordinance instead directs the commission to "encourage and solicit active participation" by interested East Hampton youth. Town Manager Cox said he also added the word "nonvoting" to clarify the status of the town's Animal Control Officer, an existing ex officio member.

The council voted 7-0 to send the draft ordinance, Ordinance No. 2026.03, to a public hearing scheduled for October 13, the council's next regular meeting.

Transfer Station: Workshop Planned Instead of Immediate Hearing

The fiscal year 2027 budget funds only about half of the Transfer Station's prior annual operating cost, a gap Public Works Director Matt Walsh said would exhaust available funding by roughly January or February 2027, even accounting for fee increases the council previously approved. Walsh's written outline, included in the meeting packet, presented three paths forward: closing the station and shifting disposal entirely to the private sector; pursuing a regional agreement with a neighboring town's facility; or narrowing the most expensive service, bulky-waste disposal, while keeping the station open for other materials.

Walsh told the council bulky waste is the single largest driver of transfer station costs and the most heavily used service, a point several members said made eliminating it entirely untenable. Resident Leonard Johnson, during public comment, urged the council to adopt a version of the third option that also curtails commercial bulky-waste dumping and self-service dumping from dump trucks and trailers, which Walsh said has damaged the facility's retaining wall and gates.

Council members debated two sub-variants of the third option: eliminating bulky waste altogether versus simply requiring residents and contractors to hand-load material into dumpsters rather than back dump trucks directly into them. Hintz moved to send the transfer station options, with those two variants explicitly broken out, to a public hearing at the council's next regular meeting. After a procedural exchange about whether a hearing or a less formal workshop would better allow the council to gather input before acting, Cox suggested scheduling a separate public workshop, tentatively in early November, rather than a hearing paired with an immediate vote. Hintz withdrew his motion in favor of that approach, and the council directed staff to schedule the session without a formal vote.

Town Manager Report, Tax Refunds and Other Business

Town Manager Cox's written report, distributed the day before the meeting, noted that sewer bills are due in October and that residents with grinder pumps will see a $100 fee increase. Cox also confirmed, in response to a question raised at a prior meeting, that the town's police chief has submitted his resignation and will work through the day before Thanksgiving after more than 40 years in law enforcement.

The council approved $2,378.07 in tax refunds covering 12 accounts, 7-0. No appointments were made. A planned executive session on pending claims and litigation was removed from the agenda after Cox advised that no related matters had yet been filed; the council adjourned at 8:14 p.m.

During general public comment, resident Rebecca Harvey said she has waited 21 weeks for a Freedom of Information Act request and asked the council to look into delays on records held by the town attorney. Becky Abbott used her time to respond to the minutes dispute discussed earlier, saying she remained calm during her remarks at the prior meeting and did not use disparaging language.

Dean Markham, Chair Jack Solomon, Vice Chair Tim Feegel, Member Ted Hintz Jr., Member Richard Knotek, Member Joelyn Leon, Member Karen Wanat, Member David Cox, Town Manager Cathy Sirois, Executive Assistant to the Town Council Matt Walsh, Public Works Director Finance Director Jeff (surname not given in the record) Kim Crabbe, POCD Steering Committee member, public comment Bill Parker, resident of 30 Main Street, public comment Cindy Craig, POCD Steering Committee member, public comment Crystal Chan, resident of 34 Walnut Avenue, public comment Cynthia Abraham, resident of 32 Meeks Point Road, public comment Leonard Johnson, resident of 21 Long Crossing Road, public comment Jacob Kravitz, East Hampton resident, public comment Rebecca Harvey, East Hampton resident, public comment Becky Abbott, East Hampton resident, public comment Juliet Hodge, former Town Planner, cited in public comment regarding the POCD

Municipal Employees Union Independent (MEUI), Local 506 — party to the Town Supervisors collective bargaining agreement approved 7-0. Connecticut Freedom of Information Commission — cited by the town manager as the source of the seven-day minutes-filing requirement debated during the minutes dispute. Board of Finance — approved the fiscal year 2027 capital plan underlying the $727,850 lease-purchase resolution and the Transfer Station budget reduction. Agriculture Commission — recommended the ordinance amendment, Ordinance No. 2026.03, sent to public hearing October 13. Plan of Conservation and Development (draft 2026) — subject of the newly opened public comment period, prepared with a POCD Steering Committee under former Town Planner Juliet Hodge. POCD Steering Committee — the roughly 23-member body, including Kim Crabbe and Cindy Craig, that produced the draft plan. Tony's (local private disposal facility) — cited by Public Works Director Matt Walsh and residents as a comparable private alternative for bulky-waste disposal. NAGE union (town hall and public works employees) — referenced as the bargaining unit that previously received the certification-stipend provision extended to the MEUI supervisors in this contract.