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An unusual piece of land, owned by the Entenmann family of pastry fame, is up for sale in Montauk for almost $25 million.
Although known for their sweet baked goods, which are still sold in dedicated sections of many supermarkets, the family also ran a tuna packing business from the East Lake Drive property for nearly 20 years, according to Corcoran real estate broker Gary DePersia.
Just south of the harbor on the east side of Lake Montauk, the compound is made up of four parcels equaling 7 acres, two parcels of which are residential lots and two of which are zoned for commercial use. The overall site is near the Montauk Airport as well as the town’s Gin Beach and Montauk County Park.
Mr. DePersia said that while the parcels could not be subdivided further, they could be merged, and if not used for a new packing or other commercial fishing operation, the property would be a perfect compound for someone with a sailing habit.
“It would also appeal to a boating enthusiast to keep one or more very large boats at,” he said. “With the ability to build a house, and it already has a guest house there, it could be an estate for a yachting enthusiast.”
A barn-like boat house, built by high-end builder Men At Work, sits at the inland end of a 150-foot-long dock. Just a stone’s throw away, the packing house remains, with an apartment on its second floor. Mr. DePersia said the Entenmanns, who now live in the South, once shipped tuna all the way to Japan, but that the business was closed around 2006. Since then they have been using the property recreationally.
After the family sold their main home in Montauk, they hired Men At Work to build a two-bedroom cottage to live in when they visited the hamlet. There is another building on the property, most recently used for storage, that had been a cottage for caretakers when the packing company was still in operation.
Closer to the water, the “tower building” has a four-car garage, an office, bathroom and storage, Mr. DePersia added. Having a property of mixed uses is not so common but could be an interesting situation for those who can afford it, Mr. DePersia said.
“It’s an opportunity that doesn’t exist,” he said. “Where in Montauk can you have both commercial and residential use that has all of these structures on it?”
He said he doesn’t know if it would be possible to change a commercial parcel to a residential one, but he did say he is exploring whether a new owner could open a restaurant there.
“They could make it a little compound. It could be the only estate in Montauk or East Hampton that has its own little marina to keep boats and friends’ boats and have some place to go fishing,” he said. “A fertile mind with a great imagination would be able to come up with something incredible.”
on Jul 27, 2014