Metro

E. End tax hike is a dune deal

A megarich bloc of Hamptons homeowners voted to fund a massive $25 million beach-replenishment project last week in a desperate bid to save their East End mansions from encroaching waters.

Compound keepers like Sagaponack industrialist Ira Rennert — who didn’t vote in last week’s referendum of the rich — will each face $2 million in new taxes over the next decade to finance a brand new stretch of beach.

A total of 168 property owners from specially designated erosion districts in Bridgehampton, Sagaponack and Water Mill were eligible to have their say but only 124 of them voted in person or by absentee ballot. The measure passed on a 75-49 vote.

First broached by a well-heeled cadre headed by financier Jeff Lignelli, the project gradually gained support within elite East End circles over several years.

The unprecedented project will pump more than 2.5 million tons of sand onto roughly six miles of mostly private beachfront from Flying Point in Southampton to the East Hampton border.

The referendum will allow Southampton Town to bond the project and be paid back through new taxes on erosion-zone homeowners over the next decade.

A voter roll obtained by The Post showed that East End titans from all corners — among them model- actress Stephanie Seymour, clothing designer Elie Tahari, Smith & Wollensky founder Alan Stillman and former Harper’s Bazaar editor Barbara Slifka — participated in the referendum.

But despite facing the prospect of six-figure tax increases, many boldface names didn’t bother to vote.

Hedge funder David Tepper, Houston-based oil magnate Anthony Petrello and ad honcho Donny Deutsch all ignored the referendum.

The annual taxes each property owner will face varies on how much beachfront they face and, in Sagaponack, the square footage of their properties.

Supporters of the project said that the unexpectedly heavy number of no votes was due in part to an 11th-hour campaign by critics who wanted to hold out for federal assistance.

While the vast majority of the beachfront is private, Southampton Town owns five small properties within the project’s scope and will contribute $1.5 million to the overall costs.

The replenishment project — which increased by $2.5 million after Hurricane Sandy damage — must still be granted permits and is scheduled to begin in September.