Supe: New Gym Could Come to Downtown Riverhead

A wave of revitalization continues in downtown Riverhead, as Supervisor Sean Walter hinted on Monday that the next new business to open its doors on Main Street could be a new gym.

Details are still unconfirmed regarding the gym, Walter said. But, he added, if the potential owner decided to site the facility downtown, it would be in one of the larger buildings. "I'm hoping that it comes to pass," he said.

Of the surge of new store owners that have either opened or announced plans to invest downtown in recent months, including , a a location, and a slated to open its doors in the fall, Walter said, "It's an exciting time." 

Walter, in fact, has talks with developers, sometimes urging them to purchase another building downtown, with an eye toward infusing even more energy into the emerging area.

A new bookstore and writing center, , to open at 8 East Main Street, possibly as soon as September -- would bring a host of new visitors into the area, Walter said. "That's one of the reasons this store by store, block by block approach, works," he said. "Every person you meet, you don't know what's going to happen or what different things will be spurred by a new business opening."

The face of downtown has changed rapidly in the past few years, Walter said, since the failed opened -- but then, nothing followed. 

Today, he said, a new wave of business owners is investing in downtown. "We're not at critical mass yet, but we're getting close," he said. "We're still in the critical survival stage with some of the businesses. But there's no reason our downtown can't be completely full. It's takes time, but it's happening."