The words “suburban” and “mall-like” may not have been what the owners of the buildings at 2 Main Street and 22 Long Island Avenue had in mind when they brought redevelopment plans to the Sag Harbor Village Planning Board last week, but that is how one board member described them. It was a description that seemed to resonate.
Mavik Capital wants to demolish both buildings and connect two new ones constructed in their place with a walkway. The building at 2 Main Street, known locally as Fort Apache, would be raised to meet Federal Emergency Management Agency guidelines and there would be parking underneath it.
On Oct. 27, the planning board met for a public hearing on the preliminary site plan and special exception permit application for the proposal.
Mavik took ownership of 2 Main Street at 22 Long Island Avenue, formerly home to a 7-Eleven, after the previous owner, Jeremy Morton, defaulted on a $5-million loan. To build what is shown in the plans, Mavik will also need a variance from the zoning board of appeals to supersede the village’s so-called superstore legislation, which prohibits buildings over 10,000 square feet.
Drew Harvey, a planning board member, was the first to call attention to the mass of the building at 2 Main Street, where the first floor is proposed to be more than eight feet above ground level. “It’s a parking garage at grade,” he said, adding that he does not think it is in keeping with the existing character of the village.
The plans amount to a 27,000-square foot “masonry mass,” he said. “It’s a lot of mass that’s going to be at the end of Main Street.”
“I think it’s suburban. . . . I think it’s mall-like,” Mr. Harvey said.
“Just having heard the word ‘suburban’ or ‘mall’ . . . I find it very unsettling,” Keith Green, a village resident, said during the public comment period. “I’m devastated,” he said after seeing the plans.
“This piece of land is Sag Harbor’s last chance to get the waterfront right, and this isn’t it,” he added.
Mr. Harvey wondered if there might be an option to separate the proposal into several smaller buildings.
“What’s the experience when you’re walking down the street?” John Shaka, the board’s chairman asked, noting that the wall height would tower over him and he is six feet tall. The building is in the waterfront district, where a harbor view is a matter the village takes “very seriously,” Mr. Shaka said.
Edward Corcoran, another board member, note that already “today you have to step up into the building” on Main Street.
“We have zero [water views] today,” Chris DiSunno, the project architect, said of the current conditions.
While it might not yet be a perfect plan, Susan Hewitt, a board member, said, “I won’t lose any sleep over the demolition of either of the two buildings.”
Jay Bialsky, who owns 2 West Water Street, the closest western neighbor to the 7-Eleven building, said that, years ago, the Fort Apache building was born out of spite. After a disagreement with the village, the property owner vowed to “design the ugliest building,” he said. “Fort Apache needs to go.”
Many of the tenants, including Mr. DiSunno, say the project is a long time coming.
“It’s not in great shape and it has not been since we got in in 2018,” said Jesse Matsouka, an owner of K Pasa, a restaurant in the building, and Cruust, a sandwich shop that opened there this year. He said the new owners are committed to building something that fits the neighborhood and the tenants.
“They are very open to trying to create something that is for the village,” Mr. Matsouka said. His brother, Tora, agreed, calling their landlords’ plans “refreshing.”
With that said, Ms. Hewitt said a very close look is in order. “Let’s make something great . . . instead of just okay,” she said.
Another project that could reshape the face of Sag Harbor was also on the agenda that night, as the board voted on what will come next for Adam Potter’s project at 7 and 11 Bridge Street.
Mr. Potter is seeking a special exception permit and site-plan approval to tear down the existing buildings on the lots and build a three-story, 81,000-square-foot building with around 50,000 square feet devoted to housing. It would have 28 units that would be sold at market rates and 20 affordable units. On the first floor, 8,500 square feet would be set aside for service-use commercial space. There would be 44 parking spaces at 7 and 11 Bridge Street. Mr. Potter also owns 5 Bridge Street, which is not subject to planning board review at this time.
Last week, for the first time, two board members recused themselves from the proceedings, leaving only three on the board to discuss how to move forward. While Ms. Hewitt has not been part of any of the board’s discussions, Grainne M. Coen, another board member, recused herself for the first time.
Mr. Potter has filed suit against Mr. Shaka along with a handful of other village officials and John Ellsworth, the board’s planning consultant, who works for the engineering firm Nelson Pope Voorhis.
Mr. Shaka, Mr. Corcoran, and Mr. Harvey agreed to require an additional public hearing on the project, which Mr. Ellsworth said is “not typical but it does happen.” Mr. Shaka said because of the public pushback against the project, it would be appropriate. However, they agreed not to extend the public comment period past a public hearing date, which will be scheduled after the next board meeting on Nov. 24.
