Island Water Park gets full site plan approval
The Riverhead Town Board on Tuesday granted final site plan approval to Island Water Park in Calverton, a project that has been under review for nearly 20 years.
The water park will feature a 20-acre man-made lake, restaurant, indoor wave pool and other activities.
Island Water Park owner Eric Scott has said his park will differ from nearby Splish Splash in that it offers more activities, rather than rides.
The unanimous approval granted Tuesday was an amendment to a site plan approval granted to Island Water Park in March 2013.
The Town Board had also granted preliminary approval for the amended site plan application on July 7, subject to a number of conditions, which have now been met.
Among the changes from the 2013 version of the project was a change of use of a 49,200-square-foot main building from warehousing use to a commercial entertainment use.
The project hit a setback in November when town building and planning administrator Jefferson Murphree issued a stop-work order, saying “there was interior building work being done that was not in compliance with any of the approved site plans and no building permits were submitted to the Building Department.”
The 42-acre site, located within the Enterprise Park at Calverton, was purchased from Riverhead Town for $714,000 in 2003. It was originally planned for Youngs Avenue but neighbors objected, and the town suggested the EPCAL location.
At Tuesday’s Town Board meeting, former Councilwoman Barbara Blass said she had filed a Freedom of Information Act request asking to review the site plan for Island Water Park, but it hasn’t been made available to her, and it’s not on the town website.
She asked if the grading and drainage plan shows a balanced cut and fill, which means no material is coming on or leaving the site.
“We’re trying to figure out if there will be materials moving in and out of the site,” she asked.
Town Planning aide Greg Bergman said the grading and drainage plan does indicate it’s a balanced cut and fill. He said the applicant stated the existing stockpiles of material on the site will be used to fill in retaining walls.
“We are not anticipating any more material from the site,” he said.
