Where, and to what degree, the past should be allowed to enter the present is the focus of a study East Hampton Town will undertake in the near future. The study’s findings will shed light on a buried culture, as well as help local government and property owners deal with the folks who lived here long before the concept of real estate was born.
Deciding whether the town’s chief responsibility is to preserve historic sites or to protect homeowners’ rights is tricky, with all sorts of ethical and legal considerations. Take the case of Michael and Sharon Falcone, who in June of 2005, after four years of back and forth between archaeologists and town planners, were given permission to build a 4,751-square-foot, two-story house with a swimming pool and a detached garage on an extraordinary piece of property on Lake Montauk.
Good article.