Sunday, November 15, 2026
Zoning questions and requests were raised at the Sea Cliff Board of Trustees meeting Monday night, and information on holiday events was presented. The village has been in the process of updating its zoning code, and the updated code is currently being reviewed by council and the Building Department. Here are three things to know.
1. Sugar Daddy Baker owner asks for “practical path forward”
Resident Bill Kocis, owner of Sugar Daddy Baker, appeared before the zoning board of appeals on Oct. 27 regarding a letter from the Building Department stating that the village code does not permit his business. Kocis sold cookies from a farmstand in his driveway on Sundays. The zoning code does not allow for commercial business on residential property. Concerns were also raised about overcrowding, parking and accessibility.
Sugar Daddy Baker is licensed and registered with the New York State Department of Agriculture. Kocis asked the Baord of Trustees on Monday night to consider a “narrowly tailored text amendment” that would create a permit framework for small residential artisan and cottage food stands. He proposed some initial safeguards, like directing customers to use legal parking on Roslyn Avenue rather than on 14th Avenue, where his business is located.
2. Zoning questions raised over house on Littleworth Lane
Resident Karin Barnaby cited a zoning board mission statement from before 2011, a Town of Oyster Bay study and New York Village Law 7-738 as she raised concerns about a house on Littleworth Lane. She described the house as “massively intrusive” and “looming.”
Village Law 7-738 allows for flexibility to land design and development to promote appropriate land use and preserve natural, ecological, environmental and scenic open spaces. It is enacted in Sea Cliff under conservation zoning provisions.
Barnaby asked the board if the allowed size of the house signals a new village policy, what Sea Cliff’s zoning code means for renovations and development and how village officials are responsible for upholding and enforcing the code.
Mayor Elena Villafane said the board would take Barnaby’s questions under consideration and respond to her.
3. Holiday events scheduled
Trustee Mark Sobel detailed upcoming holiday events in the village. Wassail Day, where businesses in Sea Cliff make cider, will be on Dec. 6. At 11 a.m. The Wassail is in collaboration with the Sea Cliff Arts Council. There will be a fee to enter and vote on which business has the best cider.
The winner will be announced at the holiday lighting at 5:30 p.m. on the same day. The holiday lighting will be on the village green and featuring John Canning as emcee and a visit from Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus. The holiday tree on the village green has been moved to the opposite side of the property, which Sobel said provides more space for the event.
St. Luke’s Episcopal Church will host the annual Merry Makers Market on Dec. 13 from 1 to 5 p.m. The event will include live music and roughly 40 vendors, many are local and many are artisans. This will be the fourth year in a row the market is held.
