Editorial: RIP agri-resorts
After months of heated debate, the much maligned proposal to rezone a large swath of the Sound Avenue corridor linking Riverhead and Southold to allow for the development of so-called agri-resorts met its demise last week, when the Riverhead Town Board voted to remove the zoning recommendation from the newly approved Comprehensive Plan Update. A public forum on the proposal scheduled for Sept. 18 was also canceled.
The zoning change would have allowed for “agritourism inns and resorts” on minimum 100-acre plots of unpreserved land north of Sound Avenue — provided that 70% of the acreage was preserved for agricultural use in perpetuity and a maximum of 30% used for the resorts and amenities such as restaurants or spas. The area in question lies in an RA80 zoning district on the north side of Sound Avenue, which allows low- to medium-density residential development while requiring the preservation of agricultural parcels, natural features and historic character. In other words, single-family homes and, in some cases, accessory dwelling units, can be built there, so long as a percentage of the acreage is preserved for farming and/or the development rights are transferred to other parts of town — effectively increasing preservation.
The decision to scrap the resorts bid was all but inevitable. Confronted by a vocal and seemingly well-coordinated opposition effort — including rare and pointed public criticism from neighboring Southold Town officials — the board had little choice. Critics were so united in opposing the plan that Riverhead Supervisor Tim Hubbard — who initially supported the idea — changed his position, noting that among the scores of letters officials received during the months of debate, not a single one voiced support.
“Farmers aren’t 100% on board with it for various reasons, the people don’t seem to be on board with it and you have to then weigh the negatives versus the positives,” Mr. Hubbard said during a July joint work session on the issue with the Southold Town Board. “And right now, I see a lot more negatives than any positives.”
In the end, town officials are beholden to their constituents and, putting aside the time it took to get here, the board did the right thing in responding to what the voters clearly wanted.
Trouble is, now what?
Riverhead is projected in the next decade to add 5,000 residents to its current population of roughly 36,000, council member Denise Merrifield said at last Wednesday’s board meeting, noting, “Those residents are going to require services: our police department, our sanitation department, our highway department, our schools.” She added that continuing to develop two-acre residential parcels will neither preserve much land nor substantially increase the tax base needed to fund those public services. “We have to do something.” she said. Riverhead council member Bob Kern underscored the looming tax crisis and noted that in all the letters of opposition to the agritourism proposal he had read, “I’ve seen no solutions.”
Preserving open space and protecting the historic character of Sound Avenue — and indeed the entire North Fork — are essential priorities, and clearly town officials could have done a much better job explaining or extolling the potential benefits of the now-defunct resort plan. But when it comes to finding a solution — or at the very least plotting a path forward — local officials and the residents they represent need to find a way to get to “yes.”
