More than 90% of residents who responded to a North Fork Civics survey this summer want the Town of Southold to prioritize preservation of natural habitats, rural character, farms and open space.
Other issues residents highlighted in the survey include management of deer and tick-borne disease, facilitating affordable housing and maintaining low real estate taxes. More than 1,000 people responded to the survey, with 70% indicating that the North Fork was their primary residence. A little more than half of survey respondents were between 50 and 70 years old.
“The survey results are a snapshot of issues on the minds of a cross-section of Town residents,” civic leaders said in a press release. “Affordable housing, hotel development and house size are issues that the town government and community members have actively debated this year. Many of the topics chosen as top priorities are intertwined with others that may have received less attention.”
North Fork Civics conducted the survey online from June 5 through July 31, with hard copies available in local libraries in Southold Town. Results were tallied for the town as a whole, as well as by hamlet for individual civic associations in the coalition. For some civics, the survey marks their first poll of members.
Overdevelopment, cleanliness of local bays and sounds, and traffic were listed among the top three concerns by respondents. Among priorities for the town to address in the next two years, preservation came in the top three, followed by limiting new subdivisions, hotels and house size.
One Cutchogue resident wrote in the survey that they were concerned about the “recent development boom,” with “too big houses, new hotels, too much traffic on the weekends.” The North Fork is becoming “like the Hamptons (ugh).”
”Lack of affordable housing and employment opportunities are major issues making it impossible for our children to stay in the community where they grew up,” a Mattituck-Laurel resident wrote.
Other comments pulled out in a civics release of results focus on the visual impact of “gigantic houses,” the overpopulation of deer, the proliferation of AirBnBs in town, climate resiliency and preserving community character.
“Many positive changes have occurred over the last 30 years. It is most important that the beauty and character of the North Fork be maintained and that preserving that character is a top priority. That means some hard choices about housing, development and traffic control,” a Southold-Peconic resident wrote.
The survey results will be used to set priorities for hamlet civic groups. North Fork Civics also plans to share the results with the Southold Town Board and supervisor.
Be the first to comment