LI Native American tribe claims part of highway was illegally built on sovereign land — wants money
The Shinnecock Indian Nation is arguing in a new federal lawsuit that the state never had the legal authority to construct or continue operating Route 27 through a stretch of federally protected land that the tribe owns in Hampton Bays, because it failed to obtain the required federal approval.
A Long Island Native American tribe has filed a federal lawsuit claiming that a portion of Sunrise Highway was unlawfully constructed on its sovereign land and is seeking compensation for the continued use of the property.
The Shinnecock Indian Nation argues that New York State never had the legal authority to build or operate Route 27 across a section of its federally protected land in Hampton Bays known as Westwoods. According to the lawsuit, filed last week, the state failed to obtain required federal approval before claiming an easement on the land.
“The New York State government officials who claimed the purported 1959 easement for Sunrise Highway across the Nation’s Westwoods land did not comply with federal law, and that easement was void from the beginning,” the lawsuit states. It further argues that federal law required approval from the U.S. Secretary of the Interior before any permanent easement could be granted, approval the tribe says was never obtained.
The filing contends that federal officials were never consulted and that there is no record showing the U.S. government approved the easement. Rather than naming the state itself as a defendant, the Shinnecock Nation sued New York Attorney General Letitia James, Department of Transportation Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez, and Governor Kathy Hochul in their official capacities.
The tribe is not seeking to shut down or control the highway. Instead, it is asking the court to require the state to obtain proper federal authorization and to compensate the tribe for the use of its land. The lawsuit emphasizes that the Westwoods property “is and has always been restricted fee land held by the Nation.”
The dispute is further complicated by two large digital billboards erected by the Shinnecock Nation along the highway, which reportedly generate about $900,000 annually. The Town of Southampton has strongly opposed the billboards, calling them unsightly and demanding their removal. The state has supported the town’s efforts, leading to years of legal conflict with the tribe.
The disagreement dates back at least to 2019, when New York sued the Shinnecock Nation, citing the 1959 easement to assert authority over the land and attempt to shut down the billboards. State courts initially sided with New York, ruling that the easement was valid.
Despite the federal government confirming the land’s protected status in January, a state appellate court ordered the billboards removed in December, again affirming the state’s claim to a valid easement. In the new federal lawsuit, the tribe is asking a judge to declare that ruling unlawful and to block state officials from enforcing billboard-related actions while the case proceeds.
New York officials declined to comment on the pending litigation. Attorneys and representatives for the Shinnecock Nation did not respond to requests for comment.
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