The marketing of 2,420 square feet of retail space, along with another 1,711 square feet of office space, began last week for 138 Main Street in Sag Harbor Village, also known as the Apple Bank building.
Vault Development Partners, co-founded by Robert Zecher and Benjamin Rinzler, closed on the property on July 1, for $10.5 million. They purchased the building after a record-setting sale in May that brought them $39 million for The Mill, in Water Mill.
“The Water Mill portfolio was a great deal for our company. We redeployed 100 percent of the profits throughout the Hamptons, in five new assets,” said Mr. Zecher in a phone call last week. “Not a penny leaked out of the market, and we’re proud of that.”
Apple Bank, which currently occupies 138 Main Street, will eventually move next door to where Douglas Elliman Real Estate is located.
“We’re right now searching for the right brand,” said Mr. Zecher. “We hope to sign something over the next six months. Apple Bank will have to move and get set up. We don’t want them to miss a day of downtime. Until they move next door, we won’t be able to get a tenant in, so the new company won’t be in there until the summer of 2028.”
“He’ll be one of the big ones,” said Hal Zwick, the commercial real estate agent who has brokered Vault’s recent deals, of Mr. Zecher. “He has the Sam’s building in East Hampton Village, 105 Newtown Lane, and a corner in Southampton Village. He’s talking about other properties as well. He’s looking to be out here and is actively investing in the community.”
The Apple Bank building is zoned village business, and Mr. Zwick said it’ll likely be attractive to a “dry retail” establishment. He also mused, however, that it would be a “great place for a restaurant with 20-foot ceilings,” but that would require a change of use and there would be “hurdles to overcome.”
“We’re primarily pursuing dry retail, but you never know,” he said.
“We’ve quietly become a major player in the market,” acknowledged Mr. Zecher. “I don’t like to self-promote.” Then, quoting Jay-Z, he said, “ ‘The strong move quiet and the weak start riots.’ So, we’re moving quietly as we execute a community-focused business plan in the Hamptons.”
“I’m hoping to attract a brand that is suitable for the community and accretive to the community,” he added. “Something mid-market. Not luxury and not the bottom of the market.”
As for Sam’s Restaurant, Mr. Zecher said it still has over a year left on its lease. “I haven’t gotten any indication from them on their desire to renew,” he said. “It’s still undiscussed at this time. Summer isn’t the time for planning decisions. This winter I’d like to sit down with them and get an understanding of their goals.”