Southampton Town May Repair Oldest Home In Hampton Bays

Southampton Town officials are considering partnering with a new organization to repair the oldest home in Hampton Bays.

The Ellis Squires House was built in 1785 and still stands off Newtown Road, although vacant and visibly aged. For years officials have been unsure of what to do with the home, which the town owns, but representatives of a new not-for-profit organization, called Peconic Historic Preservation, recently expressed interest in helping the town with repairing and maintaining the property.

It is said that the original Squires family first settled in Flanders. Following the withdrawal of British troops at the end of the Revolutionary War, however, Ellis and Phebe Squires purchased a piece of property for 5 pounds in Squiretown, in present-day Hampton Bays, and built the home. The front of the house, which faces Newtown Road, has five windows and a blue front door surrounded by trim. A closed-in porch extends to the east. In addition to a brick chimney, the interior contains several historic elements, including the mantel, staircase and doorways.

The town purchased the home, and the 6.7 acres it sits on, in 2005 for $1.2 million, in part using money from the Community Preservation Fund. The home was designated a town landmark in 2007, and the land was subdivided—with the bulk of it set aside as protected open space. The home itself and a roughly half-acre parcel were unsuccessfully put up for sale in the spring of 2011. The town attempted to sell the house again 2012, without any luck—as any homeowner would need approval from the town’s landmarks board before making alterations.

According to Supervisor Jay Schneiderman, the town is now considering working with Peconic Historic Preservation to repair the home and keep it historically preserved. The co-founder of Peconic Historic Preservation, Robert Strada, said he is eager to fix up the house and attempt to get it listed on the national registry. He said having an official agreement with the town would be a key component in restoration.

“The reality is—when we are out there raising funds for the purpose of preserving a historic building—those groups who would give, they actually like the idea that there’s a government entity that’s still attached to it,” he said. “We look forward to entering into this agreement to preserve, in my opinion, one of the most important buildings in the hamlet of Hampton Bays. This building is seriously deteriorating, and something has to be done. We would certainly step up.”

According to Mr. Strada, if Southampton Town entered into the agreement, his organization would prepare architectural drawings for repairs. They would then seek funding from donors as well as from state and federal grants and prepare a timeline and budget for the repairs. Mr. Schneiderman estimated the costs of repairs to be at least $1 million.

At a December 1 work session, the Town Board decided to schedule a work session on the agreement before making a decision, as other local organizations have expressed interest in working with the town to repair the home. A date has not yet been selected for that public meeting.