In an effort to consolidate our information, we've created a page just for Coronavirus updates that are important to our community. We will continue to update this page with any news we receive. Click here to visit the page.

Suffolk County has implemented a new computer system for their COVID-19 data for confirmed cases. New data is available beginning June 3rd. Click here for more information.

Thank you to everyone who submitted a photo in the "Whatcha Been Up To?" Photo Contest. They were all fantastic! If you didn't have a chance to submit a photo for this contest, don't worry. We'll have a brand new themed contest coming soon and we hope that you'll participate! So please hold your new photo submissions until then. We'd like to congratulate Vickie Crabtree for submitting the winning photograph! Click here to see a larger version of Vickie's photo and all of our past photo contest winners.


Vickie has won a $50 Gift Certificate from Nick at Cafe Castello!

Supervisor Ed Romaine has announced that the weekly Farmers Market at Brookhaven Town Hall in Farmingville will be open every Thursday from June 4, 2020 through the month of October. The market will be held outside on the lawn directly in front of Town Hall from 2:00pm to 5:30pm.

This weekly NYS Agriculture & Markets sanctioned Farmers Market was established by the Town of Brookhaven in 2018 to encourage residents to buy Long Island fruits and vegetables and bring attention to the Town’s many farms and the produce grown right in the consumer’s backyard. Along with fresh produce, wine, flowers, baked goods, homemade bath and body products and more will be available for purchase. Social distancing safety protocols will be practiced, and all vendors and shoppers must wear a protective face covering mask.

Those who wish to participate as a vendor can register with the Brookhaven Town Law Department by calling 631-451-6630 or 631-451-6500 to obtain the necessary forms and requirements. There is no charge to participate as a vendor, however, you will need to provide a Certificate of Insurance form which your insurance broker can complete for you. If you are a winery and wish to participate, you will also need to submit Form 115W – Wine Tasting Function Permit. If you are a craft beverage vendor, you will need to submit a copy of your SLA Marketing Permit along with a valid NYS Sales Tax Certificate. For more information about the weekly Farmers Market at Brookhaven Town Hall, please call 631-451-TOWN (8696). Visit www.lifb.com to learn more about the Long Island Farm Bureau.

A new classified ad has been posted for FREE color printer ink. Click here for more information.

While their doors may be closed, Pamela Lerner Home & Design is still open for curbside pickup and delivery! Contact Pamela and she will be happy to help find the perfect gifts for anyone on your list! Click here for more information.

Peter's on the Green will be reopening for TAKE-OUT ONLY beginning on Friday, May 29th with a new, limited menu. Click here for more information.

Give your children or grandchildren a gift they’ll remember for a lifetime, CEED’s Summer Nature Program for kids! Led by CEED's very own Ranger Eric Powers, the CEED Summer Nature Experience is a week-long program in Brookhaven Hamlet that engages children entering grades 2-7 in the great outdoors.

As they continue to monitor COVID-19, they remain hopeful that this summer program will still happen. In turn, CEED will be flexible with camp registration. Payment for the CEED summer program will not be due until they are able to finalize program details. They will also provide refunds for any cancellation prior to the start of the program. Click here for more information.

New Letters to the Editor have been posted.  Click here for more information.

Bellport Village Hall has just released their adopted budget for the 2020-2021 Village fiscal year. We present it here for your review. Click here to see the adopted budget.

Since my Editorial on March 3, 2020, I have very deliberately refrained from criticizing or even mentioning the work “not” being done at the Bellport Village Marina. As you all know, there have been and are much bigger issues facing all of us and I’ve spent my time trying to inform you, as best I could, as to the status of the COVID-19 virus and how it affects the South Country Area. However, when our local government tries to rewrite history and distribute “Fake News,” I have to speak out. Click here to read the latest Editorial.

Pursuant to the Governor's Executive Order 202.26, the annual budget vote and school board election has been scheduled for June 9, 2020, and will be held by absentee ballot only.

The public hearing on this year's proposed budget will be held remotely on May 27, 2020, at 4pm. Information on how to access the hearing will be posted on the District website.

All qualified voters of the South Country Central School District will be sent an absentee ballot together with a postage paid return envelope and instructions for completing the same. To be counted, all completed absentee ballots must be received in the Office of the District Clerk by 5pm on June 9, 2020.

A qualified voter is a person who is:
• A citizen of the United States
• At least eighteen years of age
• A resident of the District for at least 30 days prior to the date of the election
• And who is not otherwise ineligible to vote under the provisions of section 5-106 of the Election Law (e.g., a person who has been adjudged to be mentally incompetent by a court).

In light of the limitations posed by COVID-19, there will be no in-person voter registration held at school district offices prior to the June 9, 2020 vote. If you are not currently registered to vote, registration with the County Board of Elections is available online through the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles website.

Those wishing to register online must do so by May 26, 2020.

Contrary to what you may have heard, the Suffolk County Board of Elections will be sending out applications for Absentee Ballots. We received the following information from Nancy Marr of the League of Women Voters.

Every voter registered in a political party, with a race in the primary, will be sent a pre-printed Absentee Ballot application. The application will be forwarded via the Post Office's usual forwarding procedure. When you fill out the Absentee Ballot application, there will be a space for your actual residence and another space for where you want the Ballot sent. The Ballot will be sent where you indicate. The Absentee Ballot applications will be sent out in 4-5 batches, the first of which was scheduled to go out on May 15, 2020 and the Board of Elections hopes to be done with them by the end of next week, May 22, 2020. The Board of Elections is also firming up the Early Voting sites and they hope to have the sites settled by May 22, 2020 too.

The Brookhaven Town Division of Women’s Services and Dress for Success Brookhaven are providing professional development tools on the Town’s website, Facebook, and Instagram to assist clients during the COVID-19 pandemic. Career Center information has been posted online along with emergency resources for women in need. Dress for Success clients have access to Skillport’s learning platform which has a multitude of professional development resources and online workshops. Up-to-date resources and links on the Women’s Services websites and social media platforms are available that provide information about unemployment benefits, healthcare options, health concerns and safety tips. Recently virtual classes and workshops have been offered through zoom video conference technology. Topics include Stress Management, Health, Goal Setting, Finance, Career Exploration (new income streams), Civil Service Jobs and Linked-In. For more information about the Town of Brookhaven’s Division of Women’s Services and Dress for Success Brookhaven, visit www.BrookhavenNY.gov or call 631-451-9127.

Dress for Success is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization that empowers women to achieve economic independence by providing a network of support, professional attire and the developmental tools to help them thrive in work and in life. Established in 1999 with the support of the Town of Brookhaven, the Division of Women’s Services and more than 50 volunteers, Dress for Success Brookhaven has been instrumental in helping more than 6,000 women achieve their goal of becoming self-sufficient and economically independent.

COMPASS Unity has been Bellport/South Country School District's drug and alcohol prevention coalition since 2009. Their mission is to address and revitalize the negative social and environmental conditions, which expose youth to drug and alcohol use. They strive to help keep the youth of South Country schools and community safe and drug-free! Click here to read their latest seasonal newsletter.

As the weather continues to get nicer, and we're all looking for ways to get outside while staying socially distant, a simple walk can be a great way to get out of the house! A few years ago, The Post-Morrow Foundation, the Bellport-Brookhaven Historical Society and the Village of Bellport joined together to create a cell-phone tour of the Bellport-Brookhaven Hamlet area. This tour was developed to inform and educate local residents and visitors to this area about the historical, rural and cultural character of the hamlet of Brookhaven and the Village of Bellport!  Click here for more information.

Governor Cuomo issued an Executive Order updating voting in New York State. Here are the details courtesy of the League of Women Voters.

• Boards of Elections will include paid return postage for all absentee ballots for the June primary.

• All village & town elections scheduled to be held in March, April, May, or June will be held on September 15, 2020.

• School board/budget elections are scheduled for June 9th and will be held via mail with return postage included. Each district will send out postcard notice which details the date of the election, date of budget hearing, definition of qualified voter, and an absentee ballot.

• The Governor’s order recognizes that absentee ballot requests submitted before his Executive Orders on absentee voting will still be valid without further action by the voter.

• Boards of Elections must also make available at their offices a voting system that is accessible for voters wishing to mark their ballot privately and independently.

You can read the Governor's full Executive Order here.

This spring, as we adjust our lives to stay at home due to Covid-19, we are establishing new routines and rituals, having experiences that we’ll remember for a long time to come. The Bellport Brookhaven Historical Society's archives contain numerous letters, diaries, scrapbooks, photographs and albums that document what our past residents went through during difficult times and how these dramatic events changed where we live, and the way we live our lives.

Today, during this unprecedented time, you can help write history by sharing your unique experiences amid the pandemic, a time when community spirit is so important. The BBHS will add them to Bellport’s archives for future residents. Click here for more information.

Spectrum Physical Therapy is dedicated to providing you the best in outpatient physical therapy even at times like these. In addition to their long list of usual therapeutic services, they now offer “Telehealth Visits” during the COVID-19 pandemic, and “Outpatient Physical Therapy,” provided at your home. Click here for more information.

Times like these can bring out the very best in people. That is certainly the case with Cirillo’s Market right here in Bellport Village. Click here to read the latest Editorial.

The Bellport.com WABAC Machine, (pronounced "Way Back,") features events from years ago. We started producing the first videos for Bellport.com back in 2005. Those were the days of Dial-up modems and tiny screen sizes. Although visually outdated today, these videos still give you a sense of how things have progressed over the years. We hope you enjoy looking back.

Our next featured video is another "Loop" of the Dock featuring from January 2007. Click here to check it out!

As part of an effort to alleviate the effects of social isolation for high-risk residents during the COVID-19 outbreak, we would like to invite you to reach out to "high-risk" residents in the South Country community who may need someone to talk to during these tough times. Sharing a summary of these conversations on Bellport.com can inspire us and will also add to the oral history of our community.

The first interview for this new column was conducted by Andrew Budris with his mother-in-law, Renee Hoffman. Click here for more information.

By now, we’re all aware of the potential impact the Coronavirus is having on all of us. Many local businesses and organizations are adapting to the new rules being imposed upon them to keep our community safe. We've compiled the latest updates from several businesses in our area. Please support them in these unprecedented times. Our community must stay strong and safe together! Click here for more information.

With all the doom and gloom around us, I thought I’d share some good things and thoughts that have been happening around me. I guess I’m a “glass half full” kinda guy. Drop me a note about the positive things you see happening at this very stressful time. How are you coping? Are there special people, businesses, or government agencies you’d like to single out for special mention? We want to publish your thoughts. Click here to read the latest Editorial.

By now, we’re all aware of the potential impact the Coronavirus is having on all of us. Here’s something we’d like you to consider... Click here to read the latest Editorial.

We believe the letter we received from Mr. Roger Baker today deserves your attention so we decided to run it as an Op-Ed rather than as a Letter To The Editor. Mr. Baker says, "As someone who has been involved in the heavy construction industry for 45 years I would like to comment on the dock reconstruction." Click here to read the Op-Ed.

As Mayor Fell has decided to not let me ask questions in public at Bellport Village Board Meetings, I guess for the sake of transparency, I have no other choice than to ask my questions here, in print. So here goes... Click here to read the latest Editorial.

Boat slips are available at Fireplace Boat Basin on Beaver Dam Creek, off Bay Road in Brookhaven. The basin is run by the non-profit Carmans River Maritime Center. For information, call Charlie at 631-949-4441.

As Residents are still not allowed to ask questions at Bellport Village Board Meetings or Village Board Work Sessions, here are some more questions I have for Mayor Fell.

Thanks to the Bellport Yacht Club’s video feed from the Marina, we’ve all been able to monitor the progress on the work being done at the Village Marina. So far, it appears that all of the work is being done on the bulkheading. Being that time is short to the contractual completion date of March 31, 2020 for the work being done on the Marina, wouldn’t it be wise to work on the Electrical System, the Fresh Water System, and the Drainage System at the northern end of the Marina at the same time as the work on the bulkhead is being done? I’m not an engineer, but I would think work on these systems wouldn’t interfere with one another. I also note that work doesn’t appear to be being done on Saturdays or on an extended workday in order to meet the deadline. Mr. Mayor, are you still sure the work on the Marina will be completed by your deadline of March 31, 2020? If not, what’s your plan? Are you sure you’re going to impose significant financial penalties on the contractor if the deadline isn’t met? Click here to read the rest of the latest Editorial.

For the 7th year in a row, Bellport.com has been selected by Constant Contact to receive their coveted "All Star Award" for 2018. Every spring, Constant Contact selects their All Star Award recipients for the prior year. With over 5 million customers, Constant Contact has been a leader in email marketing since 1995 and is one of the leading communications companies designed to help small businesses and non-profits communicate with the world.  Click here for more information.

We're starting something new in our weekly email blasts... a "Featured Photo of the Week!" Your photo could be featured at the top of one of our weekly email blasts! If you have a photo you'd like us to consider featuring, email it to us. Be sure to sign up for our weekly email blasts to see if your photo has been chosen!

Placing an ad in the Bellport.com Classifieds works! Take a look at two letters we recently received from readers who had posted Classified Ads:

"Thank you for posting a photo of a beagle and our request for a sitter. We received many calls and found a lovely couple in Bellport Village to care for our beagle Molly. Many thanks and you can now remove the posting under pet sitting." - Mary and Tom

"Once again, with the help of bellport.com we have been successful in our efforts. This time we placed an ad for help in caring for our garden. Once again bellport.com made it a successful move. So please discontinue our ad. What would we ever do without you?" Best regards, Elaine

Place your classified ad today! Don't forget- Classified ads are FREE for Bellport.com Subscribers!

Click here to submit your own ad.