Southold convenes for special Town Board meeting

Scattered across the Town Hall meeting room, their faces covered obscured by masks, the Southold Town Board convened Tuesday morning for a special town board meeting.

The meeting, which was not open to the public, was broadcast live on the town’s website.

The resolutions dealt mostly with essential town business — audits, refunds, hiring staff — that do not require public comment before voting on.

A pair of resolutions approved authorizes two part-time workers to temporarily work full time. Both employees, a minibus driver and food service worker, work for the town’s senior resource center. Supervisor Scott Russell said the coronavirus crisis led to the decision, as a result of expanded home delivery services at the center.

The town also temporarily withdrew several pending public hearings originally scheduled for Tuesday evening.

They include a hearing on extending a moratorium along Route 25 in Mattituck, a hearing on increasing Zoning Board of Appeals application fees and a hearing on a code amendment that would clarify the role of the Historic Preservation Commission with regard to new construction.

It’s unclear when those hearings will be rescheduled.