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Riverhead board approves Peconic River Hotel despite public objections on parking and outreach
Summary
The board voted to grant site‑plan and special‑permit approval for the Peconic River Hotel (resolution 746). Residents raised concerns about parking, environmental‑justice outreach, translation and notice, and asked that developer financials and IDA assumptions be disclosed before approval; the board's majority described the hotel as key to downtown revitalization.
The Riverhead Town Board voted to grant site‑plan and special‑permit approval for the Peconic River Hotel as part of the Town Square redevelopment, adopting resolution 746 after an extended public comment period that included pointed objections from residents and local advocates.
Several speakers urged the board to postpone action, saying notice and outreach did not comply with Suffolk County comments for projects in a potential environmental‑justice area. One resident asked the board to "table this vote and come back when the record shows real compliance," citing county guidance that recommended 60‑day advanced notice, multilingual notice and a 45‑day waiting period after hearings. The town attorney and staff responded that the county’s submission to the town was advisory comments rather than mandatory conditions and that the board is not jurisdictionally bound to follow county comments absent conditions adopted by the planning commission.
Public commenters also raised parking as a central unresolved issue: speakers said the developer had not produced a completed parking agreement and warned that the hotel would require roughly 100 dedicated spaces. “Unless you resolve the parking issue, it is entirely premature to approve a site plan which will require that intensity of parking use,” one commenter said. Board proponents, including council members, said the hotel would catalyze downtown revitalization, benefit local businesses and support cultural venues, and that parking solutions (including a future garage and a parking agreement) were being developed.
The board’s roll call shows a majority vote in favor of the site plan; the supervisor and multiple council members spoke in favor, citing long‑term downtown revitalization goals. Several public comment requests for fuller disclosure of developer financials, the terms of anticipated IDA tax benefits and the explicit parking agreement were left on the record for follow‑up at the IDA and in future board communications.
