Southampton Town Trustees

08/21/2026

🚨 🦪 Effective August 21st, 2026 🦪 🚨
The NYS Department of Conservation has closed all of Southampton Town waters, and more across Long Island, to harvesting of shellfish to protect public health due to environmental conditions caused by extremely heavy rainfall and stormwater runoff. Please call the DEC Hotline for updates at (631) 444-0408.

08/13/2026

08/04/2026

🌾 A new chapter for the Picnic Area 🌾

Following the recent settlement of the long-running lawsuit involving homeowners, the Southampton Town Trustees and the Southampton Village, a new parking plan is now in place at the Picnic Area. The plan designates 136 parking spaces while creating buffers to help protect the dunes and maintain safe public access.

This is an important step toward balancing two values that can and should coexist: protecting our coastline while preserving historic public access to our beaches.

As implementation begins, we ask everyone to help make this successful by parking only in marked spaces, respecting the dune buffers, listening to village attendants, and leaving the beach better than you found it.

As we all know, the sand and size of the beach at the picnic area can change from season to season. Please respect the parking attendants and know that if modification is needed they will ask.

Thank you to everyone who has worked toward a resolution, and to the public for helping us care for this incredible shoreline for generations to come. 🌊🌾

07/23/2026

🐣🪽 The Chicks Have Flown the Coop! 🚙🏖️

The Picnic Area is OPEN for driving!

The piping plover chicks have officially fledged, and after careful daily monitoring, we’re happy to announce that the beach is ready to welcome vehicles back.

A huge thank you to everyone who patiently waited while our tiny feathered neighbors grew their wings. Your cooperation helped give these little beach birds the space they needed to reach this important milestone and in turn help us keep the picnic area, the picnic area!

Now it’s time to air down, and get back on the sand! 🚙💨 Please continue to keep an eye out for wildlife as you enjoy the beach and our other fenced areas. Our shared shoreline is home to all kinds of amazing creatures, and a little extra care goes a long way.

Welcome back, and happy beach driving! 🌊🐚🪽

07/21/2026

🪶 When can we drive on? 🪶

That’s the question we’re hearing most often!

The answer depends on one thing: flight.

While these little fluffy marshmallows on stick legs are old enough to begin fledging, they still spend time running across the beach before they’re strong flyers. That’s why daily monitoring continues. As soon as every brood has safely fledged, restrictions can be lifted.

The finish line is in sight, and we’ll share updates as they happen. Thanks for helping us give these tiny beach sprinters the best chance to become successful fliers.

07/19/2026

Update: 7/19 The Piping Plover Chicks are within 200 meters from Jim Aery’s way, in accordance with USFWS and NYSDEC, the limited access must remain closed for today. Please check back next weekend for updates.

07/18/2026

Update: 7/18 The Piping Plover Chicks are within 200 meters from Jim Aery’s way, in accordance with USFWS and NYSDEC, the limited access must remain closed for today. Please check back tomorrow for updates.

07/12/2026

Update: 7/12 The Piping Plover Chicks are within 200 meters from Jim Aery’s way, in accordance with USFWS and NYSDEC, the limited access must remain closed for today. Please check back tomorrow for updates.

07/11/2026

Update: 7/11 The Piping Plover Chicks are within 200 meters from Jim Aery’s way, in accordance with USFWS and NYSDEC, the limited access must remain closed for today. Please check back tomorrow for updates.

07/07/2026

🪶 PIPING PLOVER UPDATE 🪶

Thank you for your patience as we continue to protect the nesting piping plovers at the Picnic Area.

Based on the most recent nesting activity, if conditions continue to progress as expected, we are hopeful the picnic area may be able to reopen sometime in the second half of July.

Please keep in mind that this is only an estimate. The timing depends on when the chicks successfully fledge and other factors beyond our control, including weather, predators, and natural conditions. The health and safety of this protected species will continue to guide our decisions.

We know many residents are eager to enjoy the picnic area, and so are we. The Southampton Town Trustees are committed to providing more frequent updates throughout the nesting season so the public has a better understanding of the process.

We appreciate your continued patience and support as we work to balance public access with the protection of our local wildlife. We will share additional updates as more information becomes available.