Vision For Proposed New Southold Hotel, Restaurant Unveiled

SOUTHOLD, NY — A new hotel and restaurant has been proposed for Main Road in Southold — and one partner spoke to Patch this week about the vision for the project.

A site plan for The Enclaves, located at 56655 Route 25 at the former location of The Hedges bed and breakfast, calls for the conversion of an existing 3,026 square foot residence with a 584 square foot addition into a 74 seat restaurant and the construction of a 49,659 gross square foot hotel with 22 units, an outdoor pool, and 123 parking stalls on 6.75 acres in the hamlet business zoning district, according to the planning board.

Plans call for 18 hotel units with four one-bedroom cottages in the rear of the parcel, the planning department said.

The new application was discussed at a Southold planning board work session Monday.

According to Southold Town planner Brian Cummings, the parcel includes Main Road frontage and runs back to the Long Island Rail Road tracks; the current use includes a residential dwelling, two sheds, a one story frame garage, basement and root cellar.

To proceed, the project requires a special exception from the Southold zoning board of appeals for its planned hotel use.

Cummings added that there are certain requirements for the parcel size, including no music, entertainment or loudspeakers and a maximum square footage for the guest units.

An interdepartmental meeting is slated for Wednesday to "discuss the most efficient process" moving forward, said Planning Board Chair Donald Wilcenski.

He added that the ZBA approval "is pivotal" and the recommendation would be that the ZBA take lead agency during the special exception analysis, with the planning board's staff and help.

A site plan review cannot take place until the special exception is granted, Wilcenski said.

"We've gone down this road with a couple of other projects," he said. "This is probably the best way to handle this, to make sure you can get your variance. We won't have you spending money on site plans and not getting the special exception you need. Get the special exception and then we'll move this forward," he added.

Wilcenski added, "The one thing we have gotten criticism for is that we have let some people go so far down the road, spending a lot of money and then, something changes. We want to be upfront" about the need for a special exception granted by the ZBA, he said.

Staff recommendations, Cummings said, include the need for a clear description of the square footage of each building and use, a completeness checklist, a full environmental assessment form, and separate key maps showing all rights of way within 500 feet and all existing buildings and curb cuts, "to get a feel of the overall content of the area."

A vision for the project

Andrew Giambertone, a partner in the project, spoke to Patch this week about the vision for the plan.

He said the goal is to create a "high end" restaurant. "We're between Caci and The North Fork Table. We've got some stiff competition," he said, smiling.

He added, "We're hoping to create a unique environment. The Town of Southold seems to be gravitating toward bringing more upscale wine tastings to the wine area."

And, he said, there's the new Southold Opera House on Main Road. "You've got all the components that would make Southold great — except a really great place to stay," Giambertone said.

The owners of the property, Giambertone said, are local residents. "They're looking to preserve the bucolic nature of Southold, and not turn it into anything else. They love what Southold is all about, love the relaxed atmosphere. And they seen the need for the hotel, see the need for that opportunity."

What makes the parcel unique, Giambertone said, "is all you see from the street is the restaurant. What you see today is what you'll see in the future."

In addition, he said, a hedgerow is planned to screen the hotel from the guests at the restaurant. "You'll drive in, make a left, go down along the hedgerow, make a right — and only when you make that right will you see the hotel."

Between the hedgerow and hotel there will also be close to three quarters of an acre of a meadow, where the hope is to place sculptures on a rotating basis.

The hotel, he said, "is set really far back."

Also, he said, "We've organized it so all the activity is on the western side of the hotel." Buffers will exist to the south and east, where neighbors live.

All neighbors will see, he said, "is windows and landscaping." There will be dense evergreen screening between the hotel and the neighbors, Giambertone said.

As for the eatery, Giambertone said, with competition from top-notch restaurants nearby, "We're hoping to bring an equally significant flair."

One of the partners in the project is a restauranteur from Paris who owns hotels there and in the south of France, who's "looking to bring a little more continental feel" to the menu.

But, Giambertone added, "As residents of Southold, we're enamored with the farm to table concept, and are hoping to utilize local produce."

The need for a hotel exists, he said. But neighbors should not worry about a noisy establishment, he said.

The aim is to provide guests with a place of "respite and privacy, where they can enjoy what's beautiful about Southold — which is the peace and quiet," Giambertone said.