House Size

The Orient Plan Propositions

The Orient Plan Propositions

Tabulation of Votes Percentages reflect the number of YES or NO votes divided by the total number of ballots cast (364). Actual YES and NO votes cast for each proposition shown in parentheses. 1 Building size: Under current zoning rules, a house can cover 20% of a parcel, 8000 sq. ft on an acre, but this can result in a 20,000 usable sq. ft. home ( 2 1/2 storeys) regardless of the size of nearby homes. Similarly, a 5,000 sq. ft., 2 1/2 storey house can be built on 1/4 acre. This measure would limit new house construction or significant expansions so that they are not too much larger than those of their neighbors.       No construction shall be permitted that would result in overall housing size (usable square footage) that is out of scale with the existing housing in the immediate neigh-...

read more
Watch Big House Presentation by Southold Civics

Watch Big House Presentation by Southold Civics

This coming Tuesday, the Southold Town Civic Associations will be making a presentation at a public meeting of the Town Board on the ever-increasing house sizes in Southold. The presentation will include our joint proposal for limiting house size in Southold, something that almost all other East End towns have enacted. (East End Beacon article)

read more
Civic groups ask Town Board to take action on large houses

Civic groups ask Town Board to take action on large houses

A seasonal bungalow razed to make way for a year-round home. A historic cottage leveled and replaced with something much larger.

Sound familiar?

It does to virtually every civic group within Southold Town — and they are pressuring the Town Board to take action on house size.

Members of the Orient Association, East Marion Community Association, Cutchogue Civic Association, New Suffolk Civic Association and Mattituck-Laurel Civic Association, appealed to the board during a work session Tuesday, arguing that while each hamlet organization must contend with its own unique issues, house size transcends geographical boundaries.

read more

Happening Now

Orient Water Project Recommendations Survey

Orient Water Project Recommendations Survey

The OA Water Committee recently met with consultants at CDM Smith to discuss present and future recommendations that the community should consider to sustain the health of our water resources.  While the consultant has analyzed historical data from private well testing performed by Suffolk County Department Health Services, we do not have much information about how folks in the community are coping with issues of contamination and reliability.  The Committee wanted to hear directly from residents about their experience and practices with their well water.
read more
Summer 2023 Newsletter

Summer 2023 Newsletter

We hope you are all enjoying the cool and peaceful days of spring as we approach the busy summer months.Kicking off the summer season, after a long hiatus the first in-person Annual Meeting of the Orient Association will be held on Saturday, May 27th at 9:30 am in Poquatuck Hall.Members of the Orient Association will be voting on a new slate of officers and Board Members will be introduced.
read more
Why Should We Care About Code Compliance? June 11, 2023

Why Should We Care About Code Compliance? June 11, 2023

The town code includes regulations about many things that affect us including short-term rentals; building size and construction, noise; our visible environment including signs, lighting and dark skies; RV, trailer and boat storage; landscaping and dumpsters. Code compliance and enforcement (or lack of it) often comes up in our community meetings. It impacts many of the things that recent surveys say we value. Learn how code enforcement works and some ways it might be improved, and your role in ensuring compliance and enforcement.
read more