Pope Francis died earlier today at the age of 88. The pontiff’s passing is being mourned by Long Island’s approximately 1.2 million baptized Catholics. This includes the combined populations of Nassau and Suffolk counties. The total population of both counties is about 2.9 million. So Pope Francis' legacy is profoundly felt locally, as well as by the 1.4 billion Catholics worldwide.

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The most aggressive experiment with alleviating traffic delays along County Road 39 in Southampton in more than 15 years will take place on weekday afternoons over the next two weeks, starting today. Michael Wright reports on 27east.com that afternoon commuters should expect to see very different traffic patterns in several places along the roadway between North Main Street in Southampton Village west to Sunrise Highway during the evening rush hours. Starting this afternoon at 4 p.m., the three traffic lights on County Road 39 west of Southampton — at Sandy Hollow Road, Magee Street and Tuckahoe Road — all will be switched to blinking yellow or steady green for the three peak hours of the afternoon commute.

Likewise, the lights at St. Andrews Road and the southern end of Tuckahoe Road along Montauk Highway will be switched to flashing yellow from 4 to 7 p.m.

To safely halt the normal red-green cycle of those lights, all of the intersections will have to be closed to traffic crossing County Road 39 or Montauk Highway, or turning left off either side of the roadways, between 4 and 7 p.m.

Left turns onto County Road 39 also will be prohibited from North Bishops Lane and Tuckahoe Lane.

Southampton Town Police officers will be stationed at all the main intersections to ensure safety and prevent cars from ignoring the turn restrictions; and there will be a police car dedicated to patrolling the road to quickly address accidents and keep travel lanes cleared.

Police also will be using drones to track traffic conditions and spot problem areas that need attention.

Residents of side streets off the main thoroughfares are being warned to plan on taking alternate routes that allow for right turns onto the main roads during the 4 to 7 p.m. hours.

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The Rogers Memorial Library in Southampton invites you to join them tomorrow in Agawam Park for an Earth Day Cleanup!

Starting at 10 am, they will work to prevent plastic and other harmful pollutants from degrading our community. Meet at the Southampton Village monument. Gloves and other cleanup materials will be provided.

That’s tomorrow at Agawam Park in Southampton Village starting at 10 am.

All are welcome!

Earth Day is an annual event on April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protection. First held on April 22, 1970, it now includes a wide range of events coordinated globally through earthday.org including 1 billion people in more than 193 countries.

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A Westhampton Beach movie theater will reopen on Friday after three years of renovations and planning. Lee Meyer reports in NEWSDAY that the Sunset Theater is the latest in a series of shuttered East End cinemas that have been independently purchased or renovated to serve as cultural hubs for their communities — particularly in walkable villages like Southampton, Sag Harbor and Greenport.

Westhampton Beach resident Inge Debyser bought the theater, which originally opened in 1927, with a small group of investors in 2022 for $1.15 million.

"Small village movie theaters really attribute to the spirit, the heartbeat of a community," she said in an interview with Newsday. "A village cinema has personal ambience and warmth."

The theater is expected to have a positive economic impact on Westhampton Beach, said Kim Clark, the executive director of the Greater Westhampton Chamber of Commerce.

"The community is overwhelmingly happy to have a movie theater back,"...

The long-awaited $7 billion renovation and potential expansion of Penn Station will be overseen by Amtrak after the U.S. Department of Transportation announced last evening the project would be taken out of the hands of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Robert Brodsky reports in NEWSDAY that Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said shifting the project from the MTA to Amtrak, which owns the 114-year-old Penn Station, would save taxpayers approximately $120 million.

"President Trump has made it clear: the days of reckless spending and blank checks are over," Duffy said in a statement. "New York City deserves a Penn Station that reflects America’s greatness and is safe and clean. The MTA’s history of inefficiency, waste, and mismanagement also meant that a new approach is needed."

Amtrak has been pushing a plan to expand Penn Station, potentially by acquiring the block south of it and building new tracks underground.

It was not immediately clear how the Trump administration envisions a new Penn Station or which, if any, of several competing ideas for a station expansion and overhaul it would support.

In a statement, Gov. Kathy Hochul, who has been feuding with the Trump administration over the congestion pricing program launched in January, fashioned the change as a policy victory for the state, which would reduce its own investment into the project.

"In multiple meetings with President Trump, I requested that the federal government fund the long-overdue overhaul of Penn Station," Hochul said. "Clearly that effort has been successful, and I want to thank the President and Secretary Duffy for taking on the sole responsibility to deliver the beautiful new $7 billion station that New Yorkers deserve. This is a major victory for New Yorkers, and the use of federal funds will save New York taxpayers $1.3 billion dollars that would have otherwise been necessary for this project."

MTA chairman and CEO Janno Lieber in a statement said he's glad the federal government is prioritizing the reconstruction of Penn Station but insists the city's transit agency should continue to play a role moving forward.

"Over a hundred million MTA customers — two-thirds of Penn Station’s total ridership — use the facility every year," Lieber said. "As the major leaseholder in the station, we expect to participate in the administration’s and Amtrak’s efforts to ensure future plans meet the needs of everyone who uses it."

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Rep. Nick LaLota of the 1st Congressional District…which includes the East End…, Rep. Andrew Garbarino of the 2nd Congressional District…also in Suffolk County… and 10 other House Republicans wrote to their leadership Wednesday to express support for Medicaid and object to steep cuts in funding for the healthcare program that serves nearly 80 million lower-income Americans.

“Balancing the federal budget must not come at the expense of those who depend on these benefits for their health and economic security. We cannot and will not support a final reconciliation bill that includes any reduction in Medicaid coverage for vulnerable populations,” per the letter from these dozen House Republicans.

Denise Civiletti reports on Riverheadlocal.com that earlier this month, the U.S. House of Representatives narrowly approved a budget framework bill that could mean significant cuts to Medicaid. The bill instructed the House Energy & Commerce Committee (which has jurisdiction over Medicaid) to reduce the federal deficit by at least $880 billion over 10 years. Democrats argue that Medicaid is the only place where cuts at that level could be made. GOP leaders have said Medicaid will be reformed to eliminate waste, fraud and abuse, but will not be significantly cut.

On Wednesday, Congressman LaLota stated, “Medicaid is a vital safety net that provides health care to millions of low-income Americans, including children, seniors,...

King Kullen, Long Island's largest family-owned grocery chain, is closing another supermarket, this time a 34-year-old store in Middle Island. The store is located at 1235 Middle Country Rd. in the Strathmore Commons Shopping Center. The supermarket occupies about 45,000 square feet, said Robert Monahan, property manager for Island Associates Real Estate Inc., the Smithtown-based company that manages the center. Monahan confirmed that the store will be closing but said he did not know when or the reason for the impending shutdown. Tory N. Parrish reports in NEWSDAY that the King Kullen in Middle Island opened in January 1991, according to a grand-opening advertisement in Newsday's archives. Headquartered in Hauppauge, King Kullen Grocery Co. did not respond to Newsday's inquiries yesterday about the reason for the store's closing, the timeline for the closing and the number of affected employees. Most of the grocery company's store employees are members of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union. UFCW Local 1500 in Westbury represents 41 part-time and nine full-time employees working in the front-end, grocery, produce, dairy, frozen food, deli, bakery and receiving areas of King Kullen's Middle Island store, said Aly Y. Waddy, secretary-treasurer for the local union. "Local 1500 is working to maintain as many jobs as possible. [There is] no indication of any layoffs yet," she said yesterday. Founded in Queens in 1930, King Kullen Grocery Co. operates 30 stores on Long Island, including 26 King Kullen supermarkets. The other four are Wild by Nature natural food stores. Across eastern Suffolk there are King Kullen Grocery Stores in Bridgehampton, Cutchogue, Eastport, Hampton Bays, Manorville, Center Moriches, Shirley, and for the moment – Middle Island.

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A divided Riverhead Town Board this week took the first step toward selling the historic and blighted Vail-Leavitt Music Hall to The Jazz Loft. Alek Lewis reports on Riverheadlocal.com that the Riverhead Town Board passed a resolution 3-2 authorizing the town attorney “to take all such actions as may be necessary and appropriate to consummate such sale” of the building to The Jazz Loft. The nonprofit organization previously restored a historic building in Stony Brook built in the 1770s and turned it into a performance venue and music museum.

Council members Bob Kern and Ken Rothwell dissented. They tried unsuccessfully to table the resolution, arguing that the town should open the process to other potential buyers. They voiced support for the other pitch to purchase the building made by Ray Castronovo, principal of the Riverhead-based Zenith Group.

In 2023, Suffolk County granted $250,000 for the restoration of the Vail-Leavitt, which Riverhead Town officials say will be transferable to The Jazz Loft when it takes possession of the building. The Vail-Leavitt is in need of extensive repairs, according to officials.

Supervisor Tim Hubbard and council members Joann Waski and Denise Merrifield backed The Jazz Loft, citing its year-long collaboration with the town and commitment to restoring the Vail-Leavitt.

The Jazz Loft could start renovations on the Vail-Leavitt…built in 1881 as an upstairs opera house…at the beginning of this summer and be open by November, depending upon how quickly the transaction occurs according to Jazz Loft President and Founder Thomas Manuel.

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The Southampton Village Police Benevolent Association will hold its annual Easter Egg Hunt on Friday, April 18…that’s tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. in Agawam Park in Southampton Village. All kids age 10 and younger are invited to participate but should bring a receptacle to pick up eggs. The Easter Bunny will be on hand for photo opportunities. There will be a great prize egg among the thousands scattered on the field at Agawam Park in Southampton tomorrow at 10...