Community Rallies for Rob Balnis

When Rob Balnis had a stroke while driving to his office at East End Physical Therapy in late August and his car hit a tree, he was abruptly placed on a trajectory he had helped countless patients navigate over his 25-year career as a physical therapist — this time as a patient himself. 

By Bettina Neel

It Seemed Like a Great Idea

In 2022, Mary Mackey applied through the East Hampton Town Home Improvement Program to fix some issues at her house. The town-selected contractor still hasn’t finished the work, what has been done has been deemed “shoddy” by the town’s licensing review board, and the cost to fix what’s been done has ballooned.

By Christopher Gangemi

A No on Further Lane

The East Hampton Town attorney has concluded that a complaint by neighbors of 370 and 372 Further Lane in Amagansett, where the properties’ new owners have planted a hedge and trees in an easement, is without merit as the plantings do not violate easements created in 1989 and respected until recently. 

By Christopher Walsh

Simon Kirke Enters Rock Hall of Fame

The drummer and composer, who lives in Montauk, is a founding member of Bad Company, which joined the 2025 Hall of Fame inductees Chubby Checker, Joe Cocker, the White Stripes, Cyndi Lauper, OutKast, and Soundgarden.

By Christopher Walsh

Recognizing Grossman’s Half-Century of Activism

Karl Grossman, an author and educator who has tirelessly advocated for the environment and journalism, and against nukes, will be honored on Saturday at the Sag Harbor Cinema in a fund-raiser hosted by Fred Thiele. 

By Christopher Walsh

Salaries, Retirement Drive Over-the-Cap Town Budget

The East Hampton Town Board held two public hearings on its 2026 preliminary budget last week: one to allow it to pierce the state-mandated 2-percent cap on tax levy increases, and the other on the details of the budget itself. 

By Christopher Gangemi

Building Application? Better Get There Early

The East Hampton Town Building Department, which cut its hours in August, closing to the public on Wednesdays to attack a backlog of applications, announced another change. Building inspectors are now available at the counter and by phone from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Monday through Friday, including Wednesdays.

By Christopher Gangemi

Montauk Field Hockey Goes Undefeated

In Montauk this fall, the girls field hockey team put on quite a show, finishing the season 9-0-1 to go undefeated for the first time since 2018.

By Alison Morris Roslyn

Students Redo Rauschenberg for Guild Hall Art Fest

As one gallery at Guild Hall opens an exhibition Saturday of works by the pioneering artist Robert Rauschenberg, who would have turned 100 this year, the other will be filled with student work inspired by Rauschenberg’s innovation. 

By Star Staff