Riverhead previews workforce housing

Standing in a muddy lot in downtown Riverhead, local officials and developers set up tripods to hold renderings of the town's first workforce housing project, then grabbed shovels for a ceremonial groundbreaking.

But as they stood Thursday in front of piles of rubble that until a few weeks ago had been the old Club 91 bar and adjoining buildings, just behind the six green trash containers being used to cart away the debris, all the officials had slightly different views of the new Summer Wind Square project.

The four-story building -- which will house 52 apartments and a restaurant -- will give a whole new look to Riverhead's business district

For Riverhead Supervisor Sean Walter, the apartment units are a key piece in the downtown's business district revitalization, as they are expected to bring working families and foot traffic to local streets, and a bright new look to what has been a decaying, depressed area at the gateway to his town.

For County Executive Steve Levy, it was the last ceremony for new workforce housing that he will hold before leaving office at the end of the year. Levy said that planned or completed workforce housing has been important in revitalizing several communities in Suffolk, including Ronkonkoma, Bay Shore, Patchogue and Huntington Station.

"I'm very proud of workforce housing," Levy said. "This will help revitalize the town."

For Town Councilwoman Jodi Giglio -- a partner in Eastern Property Investor Consultants -- the groundbreaking was the end of a process which started when she and her business partners proposed the idea nearly three years ago.

Giglio, who abstained from every town board vote on the project, said the building would become the bookend to the new 100-room Hyatt Place Hotel and the expanded Long Island Aquarium and Exhibition Center on the other end of East Main Street.

The four-story building takes advantage of changes over the past few years in the town zoning code, which allows mixed-use buildings in the business district, greater residential density and also permits taller structures than the older downtown office buildings.

Along with the county's $1.96 million land purchase, which will help hold down rental costs, Suffolk will spend more than $300,000 on infrastructure improvements in downtown Riverhead :

$50,000 for a pedestrian crosswalk to Grangabel Park, across Peconic Avenue from the new apartments;

$87,350 for a new walkway, driveway and renovations to the East End Arts property a short walk from Summer Wind Square;

$90,000 for floating docks and a boat storage facility on the Peconic River waterfront;

$99,500 to help build an all-season ice skating rink in the municipal parking lot just east of Summer Wind Square.

Inside Summer Wind Square

The first workforce housing project in the town of Riverhead.

Four-story mixed-use building will take about 10 months to construct.

Suffolk County spent $1.96 million to acquire the land and will spend more than $300,000 in infrastructure improvements.

One-bedroom apartments are expected to rent for an average of $850 to $900 a month; two-bedroom apartments for about $1,100 to $1,300 a month.

The main floor will include a 100-seat restaurant and other commercial operations.

Rental applications, through the Long Island Housing Partnership, will be based on a sliding scale depending on an applicant's income and other factors.