Erosion suit adds East Hampton town

A group of homeowners living on bayfront property east of the Lake Montauk Harbor jetties has filed an amended lawsuit claiming the Town of East Hampton is responsible for erosion on the beaches that is affecting their homes.

Jetties built by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1941 were constructed at the behest of the town to maintain beachfront on the west side for commercial marine activities, according to the complaint.

The original lawsuit was filed in January, but the homeowners' attorney, Jonathan Sinnreich of Central Islip, said additional research discovered it was clear that the town had asked the federal government to build the jetties with the understanding that the town would be responsible for maintenance or damage.

"The town cannot duck its responsibility," Sinnreich said last week. "The town is the landlord. They own the jetties."

East Hampton Supervisor William J. Wilkinson said one of his first acts when taking over in January 2010 was to replenish the sand in front of the affected homes and to shore up the bulkheads along the bay. Although he wouldn't talk last week directly about the lawsuit, he did speak about the town's actions to keep the homes safe.

"It's a little disappointing to me that they say we are at fault when my administration stepped up immediately to solve the danger to those properties," said Wilkinson. He also noted that fast-tracking environmental permits had helped. "They were in dire straits. I could name six or seven or eight homes that we saved."

The homes were built after the jetties were put in place, but that shouldn't matter, said Sinnreich.

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The lawsuit asks for $10 million for the homeowners to reimburse them for repairs they have had to make on their homes and replenishment of the beaches there, among other things.

Also named as defendants in the lawsuit are Suffolk County, New York State, Joe Martens as acting commissioner of the state Department of Environmental Conservation, and Ruth Noemi Colon as acting commissioner of the Department of State for the agencies' role in the jetty construction.

"The claims against the County of Suffolk are completely without merit and we are confident that they will be dismissed in their entirety," said Suffolk County Attorney Christine Malafi.