'Mayor mean' faces Hamptons rebellion for EMS power grab

Mayor Mean is making the Hamptons mad.

Jerry Larsen is being called the “Money-mad Hamptons Mayor” for two years of controversial rule in East Hampton, infuriating long-time residents with radical changes while pitting year-round locals against their moneyed summer counterparts, like his social media friend Alec Baldwin.

Under his administration, Prada sponsored the lighting of the outdoor Christmas tree. Santa Claus arrived by police helicopter.

And when a street was named for cookbook author and longtime resident Ina Garten in November, the mayor made the surprise announcement not at the town hall, but on Drew Barrymore’s show.

The off-season calm of East Hampton is being shattered by a rebellion over the mayor’s plans to change the local EMS system. Shutterstock

Larsen, 58, had already earned the ire of locals when his administration started charging for parking on village-owned lots shortly after he came into office in the village where Jon Bon Jovi, Steven Spielberg and music producer Russell Simmons own summer homes.

“Overwintering geese will now also be charged pond fees,” joked one resident on social media when the parking measures were announced two years ago. “Proceeds will be used to finance future dredging.”

But now he is facing a new battle with locals over his most controversial move yet: his plan to privatize the local volunteer ambulance service, bring in more paid professionals and charge locals for using the service.

East Hampton Village Mayor Jerry Larsen (center) with wife Lisa (to his left) pose in front of police helicopter that brought Santa Claus to the village last year.Mayor Jerry Larsen/ Instagram

The East Hampton Village Ambulance Association has been run by mostly working class local residents, some of whom have devoted thousands of volunteer hours to serve the community, which was founded in 1648.

“He wants to charge for ambulance service, and we said ‘absolutely not,'” said Sheila Dunlop, 74, who has worked as a volunteer emergency responder for 45 years in the village. “They already charge people in their taxes, and now he wants us to all work for free and he’s going to charge more. That’s just not going to work.”

Dunlop and several other volunteer ambulance workers who typically respond to 1,400 emergency calls every year have resigned their positions on the village ambulance, and some are applying to join a volunteer corps of EMS workers in nearby Springs, Dunlop told The Post.

Longtime East Hampton Village volunteer ambulance workers are up in arms over the mayor’s plans to privatize the service.East Hampton Village Ambulance Association

“This is how we treat our COVID heroes?” said one resident on social media last week. “Our front-line workers? Our community VOLUNTEERS who carried us through a global pandemic? Shame on Jerry and anyone who supports him on this power grab.”

Some of those volunteer EMS workers spoke at an emotionally-charged nearly four-hour long village board meeting earlier this month to protest Larsen’s plans.

“The people who are leaving are leaving because they put in 35, 36, 40 years doing the best they were able to do as a volunteer,” said volunteer ambulance worker Sandra Vorpahl at the March 17 public meeting. “You do the best you can. These people are now telling us ‘you’re not good enough…’ It just hurts me to my heart.”

Main Beach is one of East Hampton Village’s most coveted beaches. This summer, non-residents are paying $750 for parking passes – earning Larsen the name “Money-mad Mayor.”Mayor Jerry Larsen/ Instagram

Mayor Larsen and his wife at the beach, before the rebellion roiling his village. The couple were previously part of a messy love triangle.Mayor Jerry Larsen/ Instagram

Others in the surrounding community are upset with Larsen for exponentially raising the price on seasonal beach passes.

Earlier this year, his administration increased the price for summer access to the village’s pristine beaches to $750 for the season to non-residents.

In January, he allowed East Hampton Town residents to buy the parking passes at last year’s price of $500 – but only had one day to show up at village hall to make their purchase in person.

The 1,521 residents of the village have free access to beach parking, but those in surrounding East Hampton Town must pay for the privilege.

 “The non-resident passes have been selling out in hours, pissing off town residents,” said one East Hampton resident who did not want to be named. 

In his previous role as police chief, Larsen posed with East Hampton visitors including then vice president Joe Biden.Mayor Jerry Larsen/ Instagram

Larsen and his wife Lisa own a sprawling home in East Hampton Town, and rented a small apartment in the village while he was running for mayor, according to public records. The couple bought a luxury townhouse in the village in April 2021, months after winning the election, public records show.

Before their marriage in 2008, the couple was involved in a messy love triangle with Lisa’s then estranged police chief husband Robert Wood, The Post reported in 2007

In addition to increased parking fees and the emotionally-charged situation with the volunteer ambulance corps, Larsen, who counts actor and Amagansett resident Alec Baldwin among his Instagram followers, has plans to turn over an historic beach-front complex of cottages built on public land to real estate developers.

The village has already received “several submissions, including one from a West Palm Beach, Fla. company” to develop the Sea Spray Cottages at Main Beach, according to a local report. The rental of the 13 cottages bring in about $1.2 million a year, part of a $25 million village budget for 2022-23, according to reports.

Sea Spray cottages on Main Beach in East Hampton Village pre-date the town’s modern status as a wealthy resort – but the mayor is planning to turn them over to developers.

“If asked, we believe that village residents would again say that they would rather have more public space than a high-end resort rental complex that would be locked in place for the foreseeable future,” said a recent editorial in the East Hampton Star. “Parks, not profits, we say, especially when this one was already paid for.”

For his part, Larsen claims he is just trying to raise money to finance the village’s pressing needs without resorting to increasing local taxes.

Larsen did not immediately return The Post’s requests for comment Wednesday.

At the March 17 village board meeting pointed to a new non-profit he started in 2021 that raises cash for village beautification projects and other local needs. The village will use donations from the non-profit for a $1 million facelift for Herrick Park which will begin next month.

The mayor had been renting in the village before his election but bought this townhouse after his victory.

Bradford Billet is chair and executive director of the East Hampton Village FoundationSteven Hirsch

The East Hampton Village Foundation, which currently has more than $1.7 million, according to public records, is run by Bradford Billet, a former New York City commissioner who was first appointed by former mayor Rudy Giuliani, according to his LinkedIn page.

“Who is contributing to that foundation? Developers? People who want favors from the mayor?” asked the local resident.

The IRS does not require non-profits to disclose their donors. The East Hampton Foundation has not yet filed any federal tax filings, according to public records.

https://newzander.com/2023/03/29/mayor-mean-faces-hamptons-rebellion-for-ems-power-grab/