Hamptons community leaders and developers face off over McMansions

Jeffrey Colle wants to build a 14,500-square-foot home, complete with a tennis court and pool on the 40 acres of farmland he owns on Wainscott Hollow Road in East Hampton. The mansion, which would dwarf its neighbors, one of which is the historic 1802 Edwards Farmhouse, has not been well-received by the town. His proposal was rejected on that grounds that building a subdivision — rather than a single home — requires a State Environmental Quality Review impact statement. Another proposed home on a 2.9-acre property on Sagaponack’s Hedges Lane would be 6,900 square feet with a 500-square-foot pool house. A historic 1830s farmhouse sits on the property, and the town passed a law within the last month that prevents it from being torn down.