Town Receives $1 Million For Riverside Revitalization

SOUTHAMPTON, NY — Brighter days are coming to Riverside, long plagued by blight and quality of life concerns.

The Town of Southampton was awarded $1,000,000 as part of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Restore New York Communities Initiative to help revitalize Riverside, Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman announced Tuesday.

A total of $2.8 million was distributed to several Long Island and New York City communities, including Riverside, he said.

“This is exactly the kind of catalyst we’ve been looking for to spur economic development in the Riverside area,” said Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman. “The Town of Southampton thanks Governor Cuomo for helping to encourage private sector investment into the underserved community.”

The money will be used to help demolish and reconstruct two vacant buildings in the Riverside hamlet center overlay district.

A former diner that's long been an eyesore will be brought down at 20 Riverleigh Avenue in order to build a $3.5 million dollar mixed-use development — and a former auto repair garage and gas station at 89 Peconic Avenue will also be razed to build a $3.2 million dollar outdoor kayaking recreation facility and restaurant, Schneiderman said.

“Downtown communities are vital to keeping our economies thriving and to attracting businesses and families to put down their roots in New York,” Cuomo said.

The Restore New York Communities Initiative, he said, recognizes communities "teeming with potential" and invests in their transformation and futures, transforming them into neighborhoods that residents can be proud to call home.

“These NY Restore grant funds will continue the revitalization of the Riverside Community which began with the adoption of the Riverside Revitalization Action Plan in 2015,” Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone added.

Suffolk County, he added, has invested more than $5 million to rebuild the Riverside traffic circle to serve as the heart of the newly emerging downtown. He said he looks forward to working with New York State and Southampton town officials to continue the important revitalization "in Suffolk County’s most economically distressed community.”

Local civic leaders applauded the long-awaited joyful news.

“On behalf of the hundreds of my community association’s members, I thank Governor Cuomo for providing this much needed investment and strong vote of confidence in our town, county and private sector effort to recreate what was once a thriving local economy,” said Vince Taldone, president of the Flanders, Riverside and Northampton Community Association, known as FRNCA.

Patch file photo.