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Riverhead Town may be on the verge of acquiring Armory

BARBARAELLEN KOCH FILE PHOTO
The New York State National Guard Armory on Route 58.

Riverhead Town appears to be on the verge of acquiring the Riverhead Armory building, according to Supervisor Sean Walter.
The Army National Guard is scheduled to vacate the Riverhead armory later this year, and Riverhead officials are interested in using the building as a town police headquarters.
“I think we’re going to get it,” Mr. Walter told Town Board members Thursday.
He said research from deputy town attorney Annmarie Prudenit found that the town at one time owned the armory property and sold it to the state for $500.
He said he provided this information to state officials, who will determine what to do with the property. He said that after speaking to Assemblyman Marc Alessi (D-Shoreham) and Senator Ken LaValle (R-Port Jefferson), “it looks like we’ll probably get it back for the same $500 nominal fee.”
The state Division of Military and Naval Affairs is planning to close all the armories on Long Island later this year in favor of a centralized Armed Forces Reserve Center at Republican Airport in Farmingdale.
The state must first declare the property to be surplus and then the state Commissioner of General Services will rule on what to do with the land, according to officials.
The Army National Guard’s new Farmingdale is expected to be ready by Jan. 2011, officials said.
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