Coalition to Stop the Wainscott Commercial Center
Town of East Hampton proposes to purchase remaining 38 acres for open space and recreation
In 2022, the Group joined concerned community members and organizations to stop the Wainscott Commercial Center proposal, which would transform the former 70-acre Wainscott Sand and Gravel pit into a 50-lot commercial/industrial subdivision. Given the environmentally sensitive location of this site, which lies just north of the headwaters to Georgica Pond and Montauk Highway, we are calling on the East Hampton Town Board to purchase the property for conservation and limited municipal purposes. The looming threat of such an unprecedented proposal and its related impacts to groundwater and traffic is deeply concerning from an environmental and public safety standpoint.
The Wainscott Commercial Center would be the largest commercial/industrial subdivision in the history of East Hampton; be more than double the size of the Bridgehampton Commons; be located next to a New York State-designated Special Ground Water Protection Area, within 600 feet of Georgica Pond; and increase traffic on a stretch of Montauk Highway that is already experiencing one of the highest rates of roadway congestion in the Town of East Hampton and on the entire South Fork.
In early 2023, the Group testified before the East Hampton Town Planning Board on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement DEIS. Then in 2025, the Town Planning Board required the applicant to submit a supplemental DEIS to address several areas of concern such as groundwater quality beneath the site, updated traffic data, stormwater management, and more that were not adequately examined within the DEIS. Since then, two large lots on the eastern most boundary of the project site were sold off, thus changing the overall development plan.
In 2026, the Town of East Hampton proposed purchasing the remaining 38 for open space, recreation, and municipal needs. As the property’s commercial and industrial zoning would allow for substantial future development, this acquisition would mitigate concerns of a project’s environmental impact on Georgica Pond, worsening traffic, and community character.
What You Can Do
Join us in offering support for the acquisition of this property for open space! Send the East Hampton Town Board a letter today.
