Hamptons Life

Shhh, do you hear that? Of course you don’t, but you will in February. The Federal Communications Commission has granted the Hamptons Community Radio Corporation (HRC) permission to build a new 3,800 watt FM station that will operate on 90.7 FM. WEER (“East End Radio”), as it will be known, is expected to go live in February 2009.

All told, it has taken the HRC five years to bring this station into fruition. The plan is to build studios, offices and its transmitting facility somewhere in East Hampton, although the exact locale is still up in the air. These are huge steps, but the goal has yet to be reached. The HRC has also submitted applications for additional stations in Hamptons Bays and Westhampton, of which they hope to have at least one accepted sometime in 2009.

Barbara Barri, a member of the HRC board of directors, explains WEER:

"Our community station will be different than other public stations in that we intend to help other 501(c)(3) non-profits boost their contributions by helping them promote their community services over our new station, and assist them in marketing themselves to the East End."

In addition to Barri, the board of directors will include veteran broadcaster, Matt Stutterheim, Louis Donald Pizzarello, M.D., M.P.H., Isabel Sepulveda de Scanlon, publisher of "La Voz Latina" a bi-lingual newspaper, and Roger Blaugh, a community advocate and broker for Corcoran Realty.

Look — or shall we say listen — for good things to come on the East End.

Water is our friend, our life-source, and at times our worst enemy. For the bad times, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has released updated digital flood hazard maps that show the extent to which areas throughout Suffolk County are at risk for flooding. As the official news release explains:

"The newly completed maps mark the first time in several years that a comprehensive re-examination of the flood zones on Long Island has been conducted. Residents and businesses will now have up-to-date, reliable, Internet-accessible information about their flood risk on a property-by-property basis. The revised maps will also allow community planners, engineers, builders and others to make important determinations about where and how new structures and developments should be built.

The East End community has lost another legend of the water, Robert Charles Tuma. Just a few short months back, Frank Mundus passes away at the age of 82. Collectively, these two men — or shall we say captains — contributed more to the to the Montauk fishing scene than anyone that had come before them.

Recently honored as one of the eight “Old Timer” Captains by the Montauk Chamber of Commerce for his long service to the local fishing community, “Captain Bob” was also selected as the first “Captain of the Year” by the East Hampton Kiwanis Club several years ago. His reputation as one of the most respected captains in the harbor will remain, even in death.

Captain Bob was born on December 24, 1922, grew up in Montauk and graduated from East Hampton High School in 1940. His life never strayed too long from the East End, and for that we’re better off.

Predeceased by his wife, Sibyl, and by his brother, Burt Tuma of Montauk, he is survived by his two daughters, Debbie Tuma of Montauk and Wendy Tuma Barnes of Asheville, NC, and his granddaughter, Cahleigh Rain Barnes, of San Francisco, CA.

A memorial service will be held at the Inlet Seafood Restaurant at the end of East Lake Drive on Monday, November 10, at 2 p.m. Memorial donations may be made to either the Montauk Fire Department/Ambulance Squad at South Edgemere Road, Montauk, NY 11954, or to East End Hospice, 481 Westhampton-Riverhead Road, P.O. Box 1048, Westhampton Beach, NY 11978-7048.

Read more about the life of Robert Charles Tuma at hamptons.com.