Public hearing set for May 2 on EPCAL subdivision
The Riverhead Planning Board on Thursday set a public hearing for May 2 on a proposed eight-lot subdivision of land within the Enterprise Park at Calverton.
As part of its $40 million contract with Calverton Aviation & Technology, the town must split the land into eight lots. Three of those lots will be sold to the developer, who contractually must build out at least 1 million square feet within five years.
Riverhead Town will retain the other five lots, which consist of the Veterans Memorial Park, Henry Pfeifer Community Center, Grumman Memorial, the future recharge site for the Calverton Sewer District and a pine barrens lot that will remain undeveloped.
The town is seeking to amend a pending 50-lot subdivision map to instead reflect the eight lots, according to Frank Isler, the attorney representing the town on the EPCAL sale.
Mr. Isler told the Planning Board that a further State Environmental Quality Review Act review would not be necessary since a full review was conducted when the town submitted a 50-lot subdivision plan before the EPCAL sale.
“[The amended] map is compatible with the findings that were made in the SEQRA process that was undertaken for the larger map,” he said.
Planning Board member Joseph Baier asked whether they would have to restart the process with a sketch plan.
According to Mr. Isler, the proposal can be submitted as an amendment.
“Some of the lots are exactly the same,” he said. “All we’ve done is remove lots, so you’re dealing with the same sketch plan.”
CAT is currently in its second 90-day “due diligence period” on the property. The first once expired Feb. 20 and they requested another one, as permitted under the agreement with the town.
They now face a May 20 deadline to decide if they will move forward with the purchase of the 1,643 acres of land from Riverhead Town.
After May 20, the town has one year to approve the EPCAL subdivision.
The approval must be received from all the agencies involved, which would be the town Planning Board, town board, county health department and state Department of Environmental Conservation.
