Planner and engineer outline fixes for 318 East Main Street deli addition

Riverhead planning staff and the project engineer presented details of a site plan application on July 8 for 318 East Main Street, a downtown property with mixed residential and commercial neighbors that seeks to demolish and reconstruct a previously built rear commercial addition.

Planner Marissa Donowski told the board the rear addition originated in 2018 and was subject to at least one stop-work order when it was built without full approvals; a 56-square-foot rear access enclosure permit remained open. In March 2025 the applicant submitted a site plan to legalize and then demolish and rebuild the rear addition "in kind." Donowski said the applicant would need to obtain proper building permits after planning approval.

Staff recommendations and compliance items included removal and repair of a dilapidated awning (a public-safety concern; poles have reportedly been removed), resolving dual signage on a single consolidated tenant suite (town code 301249 permits one primary sign per business location), replacing a chain-link dumpster enclosure with a new compliant enclosure, and ensuring lighting fixtures meet code even though fixture heights comply. Donowski also recommended revegetation of a landscaping buffer between the property and an adjacent private lot or exploring a parking agreement if patrons continue to use the private lot rather than municipal parking across Union Avenue; she suggested considering a crosswalk to improve pedestrian access.

Engineer Brian Padilla of Cover Engineering said the rear addition is "a simple straightforward addition" intended for storage only and not to expand public seating or change the deli's use. He said sanitary calculations and a grease-trap review were completed and that the project has coordinated with Town Riverhead departments as required. Donowski said the file was referred to the South County Department of Health, the fire marshal (revised plans to be sent), Town Riverhead Water District (RPZ work), Town Riverhead Sewer District (grease-trap confirmation), town engineering, the Landmark Preservation Committee (approved June 1), and New York State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) (no comments). The Architectural Review Board approved the rear elevation.

Donowski also pointed out a code provision she cited as "03/00/1143 a2" that limits opaque window coverage to 10% and advised tenants to remove coverings that obscure storefront windows beyond that threshold. She said the applicant will return with fixes and that, after planning approval, they will submit building applications.

Next steps: staff will coordinate outstanding referrals and ARB/landmark conditions; the applicant will proceed to building-permit submission after planning clearance.