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Polish Club may sell piece of Marcy Avenue property to recoup some funds

The Riverhead Polish Independent Club may sell off a piece of its property on Marcy Avenue as a means of improving its finances. 

“We’re looking to subdivide the property,” said club president Tom Najdzion. “With the pandemic and everything else that’s been going on the last couple of years, we’ve exhausted our funds, so we are looking for ways to redeem our bottom line.”

The Polish Independent Club went before the Riverhead Town Zoning Board of Appeals last Thursday seeking variances needed to subdivide its 1.8-acre property so that part of it can be sold.

The area in question is located on the southeast portion of the property and once was used by John’s Floor Covering. It has a nearly 4,000-square-foot building on it. 

The ZBA approved the request in a 4-0 vote, with one member, Daniel Zaweski, absent. 

The club expects to sell the 15,000-square-foot section  of the property to Jonathan Troyan, who plans to use it for storage.

“This will help establish our base again,” Mr. Najdizon told the ZBA. “He’s basically using the property already so it’ll help us in the long run and we’ll go forward with that.”

The club applied for  a variance because code usually requires  a minimum of 40,000 square feet for such subdivisions. 

A variance was also needed  because the “impervious surface coverage is 83.7% on one lot and 71.7% and the other.” Town code limits impervious surface coverage to a maximum of 40%. 

Charles Cuddy, the attorney for Mr. Troyan, said the impervious surface coverage is high because this land has been used for parking at Polish Hall.

He added that Polish Hall has the same zoning as many of the adjacent streets. 

Vic Prusinowski, a former town councilman who supported the proposal, said it will not have a negative impact on the community.