On Eastern End of East Main Street, 2011 Projecting Quite Well So far

Despite a down economy, and the rolling eyes often seen when "revitalization" and "Riverhead" are mentioned in the same breath, 2011 is shaping up to be quite a productive year so far downtown, in particular on the eastern side of East Main Street. 

Beams have been piling up for months next to Atlantis Marine World, where a 100-room Hyatt Hotel and banquet center are slated to stand by July 1. Across the street, Dennis McDermott, aiming to open a restaurant in the former Chase Bank soon after Easter, recently threw away the bank's old safe as he prepares to get his kitchen ready.

“I see the potential [in downtown Riverhead],” said McDermott, who is naming his restaurant The Riverhead Project. "Route 58 is saturated, the economy is in the upswing. I definitely see Main Street getting much better much faster.”

While McDermott - who previously opened and operated The Frisky Oyster and Frisky Oyster Bar in Greenport - is waiting for nothing to get his project off the ground, the Hyatt has been trying to break ground for quite some time. 

Atlantis Marine World General Manager Bryan DeLuca and Christina Kempner, the Community Development Director for the town, explained this week that the hotel project has been in the works for nearly a decade— as long as the aquarium has been in existence. 

Riverhead officials fully supported the hotel, Kempner said, because they were - and remain - hopeful that the addition of a major hotel chain on Main Street will bring the people who will purchase from businesses on Main Street and help to keep it vibrant and alive. In December 2009, the Industrial Development Agency put its faith into action by granting the hotel an extensive 10-year tax relief, while extending tax relief for Atlantis to 20 years. Co-owner of Atlantis, Jim Bissett, told the Riverhead News-Review last March that without the tax abatements, financing for the hotel would not have been possible.

DeLuca explained that Atlantis will use the hotel and banquet center to host corporate events and weddings. Although the aquarium is already a popular spot for weddings and corporate events—it has hosted more than 100 weddings since its inception in 2000—the new venues will allow for more versatility, and allow the aquarium to host more than one event at a time. In turn, the hotel will also be able to accommodate the attendees of these events. The space will also host the Long Island Exhibition Center, which is expected to host a number of temporary exhibitions. The first such exhibition will feature an aviary filled with live butterflies.

“There aren't a tremendous amount of hotel rooms on the East End," Kempner said. "Once you get past Riverhead you don't have high density hotels. It's going to be a big attraction during the summer, and during the winter it will be a great weekend venue.”

Meanwhile, McDermott is hoping that his restaurant, to be situated adjacent to the hotel, will attract aquarium goers and hotel guests alike, since the hotel will not have a restaurant on site. In addition to the hotel and restaurant, renovation construction is currently under way at the 800-seat Suffolk Theatre, which sits on the north side of East Main, with a spring 2012 opening date. He added that the town has been extremely helpful in pushing through his project. 

Sharing a couple of anecdotes, McDermott recalled an incident when he asked for a building demolition permit and received it in 15 minutes. In another, he recalled sitting in the office of Jill Lewis, deputy supervisor. As he was telling Lewis that he planned on walking around town and introducing himself to his neighboring business owners, Supervisor Sean Walter popped in and offered to accompany McDermott on his walk around town. McDermott was shocked, and said Walter's presence made meeting his new neighbors much easier. 

"I think it's important people hear some good things, because this town has a history of things that have not worked out,” he said. “The town is responding to Sean Walter's leadership. He even has me saying it: 'story by store, block by block.' It's nothing but open doors across the board."