Southampton Town Board Tables Bel-Aire Cove Vote Once Again

For a second time in a month, Southampton Town Board members on Tuesday delayed a vote to purchase the Bel-Aire Cove Motel in Hampton Bays, to allow time for a full environmental review to be completed under the State Environmental Quality Review Act.

Southampton Town Attorney James Burke said the SEQRA process has been slowed down because the exact use of the property once the town purchases it for $1,060,000, using Community Development Program dollars, has not been determined.

Initially, Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman said he would like to see the town purchase the blighted motel, located on Shinnecock Road in Hampton Bays, and then work with the community to come up with a plan for the property, demolish the current structure, get the necessary permits in place for redevelopment, and auction the property off to a private buyer.

Mr. Schneiderman also said he supported the idea of putting condominiums on the property, and if the community was not up for that, he would leave it as a 22-unit motel. If reconstructed as the latter, he said, he would seek to change the zoning to allow for a two-story structure with 11 units on each of two floors.

Currently, all units at the motel are on the ground, with 11 facing a creek that the motel is located next to, and 11 facing the motel’s parking lot. He said he would like to see all units face the water.

The current motel is zoned residential, with a just a small portion of the property being zoned as resort waterfront business.

Over the past four years, the Bel-Aire Cove—zoned residential, with a small portion of the property zoned as resort waterfront business—has been valued at just over $1 million. It also has brought in between $16,000 and $20,000 each year in tax revenue to the town.

If converted to 10 condominiums, which could be sold for $750,000 each, Mr. Schneiderman said, the property would bring in much more property tax revenue. “That would be my goal—to be a stronger contributor to the tax base. I think it can be a home run.”

Purchasing the property with Community Preservation Fund money, and preserving it as a public park, instead of using Community Development Program funds—something several community members are advocating—is out of the question, Mr. Schneiderman said. “I don’t like the idea of buying commercial properties with CPF, with the idea to get rid of them,” he said.

He noted that the town purchased the Hidden Cove Motel in Hampton Bays in 2014, and, today, it sits as a vacant lot. Prior to its purchase, the Hidden Cove Motel served as a homeless shelter and also was used as apartments. “The town, rather than working on making it a contributor to the resort economy, they tore it down,” Mr. Schneiderman said. “Now, it’s a vacant lot.”

Mr. Schneiderman said he does not want to see the same happen with the Bel-Aire Cove Motel, noting that it is not a good piece of property for preservation purposes.

He also said the current owner would be responsible for relocating the current tenants once the purchase is made. He said that the town wants to be sensitive to the people living there, but as a motel, there should be an expectation that the residents are not going to live there for long periods of time in the first place.

Through the SEQRA process, the town is looking at all possibilities that the property could be used for, as of right.

Kyle Collins, the town planning and development administrator, did not respond to requests seeking comment on what would be allowed on the property with split zoning.

Town Board members plan to revisit the matter at the next board meeting, scheduled for 1 p.m. on December 11.