Don Bindler News Today

(Credit: Don Bindler) The Deer & Tick Committee estimates there is a total of 635 deer on the Island. The data is based on information released from a Jan. 24 flyover, using infrared video techniques from 1,600 feet.  But Committee Chairman Dr. James Bevilacqua said at the April 7 committee meeting the number could be higher and, of course, doesn’t include the fawns that will be born this spring. That could result in approximately 750 deer on the Island, Dr. Bevilacqu...

The Reporter honored by New York Press Association Credit: Don Bindler Your hometown paper brought home some prestigious awards for editorial excellence from the New York Press Association’s (NYPA) spring convention, held April 7 to 9 in Saratoga Springs. The association’s “Better Newspaper Contest” fielded 2,440 entries from 151 newspapers across the state, and were judged by the Pennsylvania Newspaper Publishers Association. Peter Waldner, the Rep...

The beach at Bootleggers Alley on Sunday of Memorial Day weekend 2020. (Credit: Don Bindler) What’s a beach? Most would answer the question simply as a place where you swim. But as the Shoreline Access Task Force is discovering, it’s not that easy. For an Island surrounded by water with multiple access areas to shorelines where families have been swimming for generations, the Town Code defines beach as a site where lifeguards are assigned and bathrooms are provided. T...

Group to ID Island waterway access sites in need of work The beach at Bootleggers Alley on Sunday of Memorial Day weekend 2020. (Credit: Don Bindler) With approximately 70 points of access to waterways around Shelter Island, the newly appointed Shoreline Access Review Task Force got marching orders last week as Chairman Peter Vielbig asked each to identify between 10 and 12 sites they think are most critical for more attention. In the discussion, the most q...

(Credit: Don Bindler) Although the current path of the storm bearing down on the tri-state area is expected to spare Shelter Island from the worst of its wrath, Police Chief Jim Read, who leads emergency responses for the town, told the Town Board Tuesday he and his team are prepared. PSEG has said a crew will be on the Island Wednesday to respond to any outages and can augment its workforce should the storm change course and do more damage than expected. “PSEG has bee...