EAST HAMPTON, NY — East Hampton Town officials have cracked down on landlords of a Montauk residence they say has been used as a short-term rental at least 55 times in nine months.
According to East Hampton city officials, the Montauk landlord received tickets for the rental of the home and other structures between May 2021 and early 2022.
Airbnb rental records obtained by East Hampton Town through a subpoena showed the residential property at 64 S. Elroy Street in Montauk had been rented at least 55 times with rents paid totaling more than $100,000, East Hampton city officials said.
The City of East Hampton code for rental residences allows a maximum of two
short-term rentals of less than two weeks over a six-month period, city officials said.
After a three-month joint investigation by the East Hampton Town District Attorney’s Office
and the East Hampton Town Ordinance Enforcement Department, a total of 57 court appearances
tickets were issued to defendants Harvey Elgart and 64 S. Elroy LLC, on charges of violating the city’s rental registry laws, East Hampton Town officials said.
City law requires rental properties, including vacation rentals, to be registered with the city
rental register maintained by the building department and issuance of a rental registration number; the rental register number must appear in any rental advertisement. Regular renewals and
updates to rental registration information are needed, the city said.
The defendants are due in court in East Hampton Town on August 1, city officials said. If convicted, the defendants face a maximum potential sentence under city code of more than $200,000 in fines and/or a period of incarceration, city officials said.
“Our East Hampton municipal codes are designed to protect homeowners and residents of the
impacts resulting from the misuse of residential properties, such as the conversion of a residence into a
a lucrative business venture,” East Hampton Town Supervisor Peter Van Scoyoc said.
“Transforming single-family homes into high-grossing rentals advertised on Airbnb
and other sites has had a noticeable negative impact on the character of our neighborhoods and
community. The city will continue to take legal action against those who do not respect our
Community regulations and values.
In addition to a restriction on short-term rentals, city code does not allow “shared homes” or the sale of occupancy rights to a home during particular time periods. Rental of one or two
bed and breakfasts are permitted if an owner resides on-site, city officials said.
Larry Kelly, Elgart’s attorney, spoke to Patch and said he filed a Notice of Claim on Friday; the notice of claim states that the subpoena used by the city was “unlawful” and that the city attorney had “no authority to subpoena business records in California.”
The proper procedure, he argued, would be to apply in California for the California court to comply with a New York court order, but in this case a “phantom index number” was put on the list. The subpoena “without a caption…The subpoena was not part of an ongoing criminal proceeding and the city attorney had no right to obtain those records,” Kelly said.
Kelly also said the property had two legal cottages and he believed the term “cottages” was not included in the Registry Act; Also, if the owner occupied one of the buildings, the chalets could be rented out without registering the property, he said.
Kelly said he tried to resolve the issue with the city.
East Hampton Town officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Kelly’s statements.
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