E
ast Hampton's megamansion era is coming to an end. The town board has unanimously approved changes to the local zoning and building codes, closing loopholes that allowed large homes to bypass regulations. A key update reduces the maximum allowable gross floor area of a new house from 20,000 square feet to 10,000 square feet, sparking disappointment among builders and some board members.

    The change aims to prevent oversized homes, which can be larger than big-box stores. Existing homes that exceed the limit will be grandfathered in, but their owners won't be able to build similar structures in the future. The board also clarified the definition of a basement and capped its size relative to exterior walls and other features.

    Other updates control massing and lot coverage by including accessory structures' open-air appendages in gross floor area calculations. Supervisor Kathee Burke-Gonzalez said, "We've just closed the loopholes in the zoning code." The changes emerged from a working group formed two years ago to evaluate potential code updates. East Hampton follows Southold Town's lead, which banned sprawling homes except those built on large lots two years ago.