The Shelter Island Town Board learned Tuesday that an error in the town's code deleted language requiring permits for dock repairs, leaving several ongoing projects in West Neck Harbor without town oversight.
Bill Geri, deputy chairman of the Water Management Advisory Council, told the board the error in the online Chapter 53 code deleted two subsections requiring dock-repair permits. He said it was discovered after a major DOT project involving a tugboat, crane and barge was found underway in the harbor with no permit on file, and at least two other unpermitted dock projects were also found.
Geri said the advisory council voted unanimously on Sept. 14 to have the erroneous online language corrected and replaced with the language actually adopted in Local Law 2-2025. One board member said the posted code, despite the error, is what the public and the town must currently follow until it is fixed. Town Attorney Thomas disagreed, saying he did not think that was correct, and offered his own view on how to fix it. "My legal opinion is like, the clean correct way to do this is to notice what the law should say, have a public hearing and then correct it," Thomas said.
Geri later said the error should not simply be allowed to remain in place. "That error should not be permitted to stand. It should not be legislated by error," Geri said. Another board member reviewed a June 9 resolution and noted the deleted section was not actually part of what the board had adopted, suggesting the mistake crept into the code without proper board action. The board asked Thomas to research the issue and advise whether to revert to the old language or re-notice the posted code for a hearing.
Earlier in the meeting, the board worked through a near-total rewrite of building permit fees covering decks, generators, hot tubs and retaining walls. Members agreed to set the deck fee at 80 cents per additional square foot, a flat $250 fee per retaining wall, and separate fee categories for generators, HVAC equipment and hot tubs at $300, $400 and $500 respectively. They also restructured fee tiers for single-family homes, moving the top threshold from 6,000 to 5,000 square feet at $550 per square foot for the first floor.
The board also discussed revising retaining wall permit requirements under Chapter 43, agreeing that new permits would be required for walls over 24 inches in height, those controlling stormwater runoff, or built in wetlands. Separately, members discussed restructuring the rental property law into three rental-length tiers and raising fines for renting without a permit, which currently top out at $250 for a first violation. One member proposed fines of $5,000, $10,000 and $15,000 for successive violations, though another cautioned that a per-day penalty clause could make such fines unmanageable. The board said it would take another pass at drafting the penalty language before bringing it back for review.
The board tabled a decision on extending the Taylor's Island Foundation's lease on town property from 2047 to 2052, with members saying they want an exit clause in case the foundation dissolves; the item is expected to return Nov. 9. The board also agreed to join a Southold-initiated request to state and county officials for a coordinated regional traffic study examining North Ferry and cross-island traffic.
The board set a budget hearing for Nov. 4 and work sessions for Nov. 9 and Nov. 16, skipping the week of Nov. 23 for Thanksgiving, with adoption of next year's meeting schedule planned for Nov. 9.