Movement afoot to launch downtown civic association
Riverhead is the one hamlet without a civic group
4 comments below
Nancy Swett, founder of iloveriverhead.com, and others are promoting the formation of a downtown civic association.
It didn't take her and her lunch companion, Nancy Swett, very long to realize that although the neighboring communities of Jamesport, Flanders, Calverton and Wading River all had their own organizations, there was no group representing the concerns of downtown Riverhead residents.
"What's needed is the continuity of a determined group of citizens who are there for the long haul," Ms. Swett told the News-Review. "From one administration to another, from one year to the next, helping to keep projects and hope alive."
East Main Street storefronts on the south side of the street include a new Mexican grocery store. But the storefronts to the immediate east are all empty.
Ms. Swett, who lives in Jamesport and runs iloveriverhead.com and northforkparents.com, soon put the word out on the Web to gauge interest in creating a Downtown Riverhead Civic Association. And although the concept is still in the formative stages, she said it seems to have some legs.
"People seemed very interested, but no one seems ready to take the helm," said Ms. Jacobs, of Cutchogue
That talk is set to begin during a brainstorming session at the first "I Love Riverhead" meeting, scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 23, at 7 p.m. at Vail-Leavitt Music Hall on Peconic Avenue.
While downtown does have the Business Improvement District and the Chamber of Commerce, those groups represent strictly business interests.
Cindy Clifford, who lives and works downtown, said Main Street and the surrounding neighborhoods are ripe for a grass-roots approach to renewal.
"It's been left to business people and politicians and no one has been able to get anything done," she said.
Her goal, she said, would be to see downtown Riverhead become the "vibrant and wonderful" community it was when she first moved there in the early 1980s.
"I want it to reach its potential," Ms. Clifford said. "Not be the ghost town that runs by the river."
Riverhead Councilman James Wooten, the only Town Board member who lives downtown, said not only that he liked the idea, but would like to get involved.
"Civics carry a lot of weight when it comes to public policy," said Mr. Wooten, adding that he would offer the community his help in getting the organization off the ground.
"I'd love to be a part of it," he said, adding that he'd be pleased to see the group continue on long after his political career.
Michael Brewer, who spearheaded the formation of the Flanders, Riverside, Northampton Community Association nearly 10 years ago, said the group has helped those hamlets by providing a conduit between the people and local government. "We were like the stepchild of Southampton," he said. "[Forming a civic group] put us on the map."
Mr. Brewer said that having a collective voice representing the people who live on the south side of the Peconic River has been instrumental in negotiations with Southampton Town. He said the same would undoubtedly be true for the downtown area and Riverhead Town.
"They see you are a power to be reckoned with," he said.
Before his group officially incorporated in 2002, Mr. Brewer said he, his brother and others worked hard to get word out about local issues and gain support for the movement. They then had to apply to New York State to become incorporated and later applied for not-for-profit status.
The entire process took just over a year, Mr. Brewer said.
Although the response to creating a downtown civic association has been mainly positive, Ms. Swett said there is one major question that needs to be answered before moving forward.
"Is anybody going to step up and do it?" she asked.
vchinese@timesreview.com
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4 comments found
Liz Strebel's comments : 2/21/2010
Liz Strebel is dead on with her assessment of what needs to happen downtown.
I am president of a third generation family business that grew for over 50 years in the heart of downtown Riverhead, among the iconic names of yesteryear Liz mentions, before having to pulling the plug in 1992 - the same year Tanger 1 opened. Tanger's arrival was ultimately the death blow to downtown, which was already on a slippery slope, with CR58's national retail growth that had begun some twenty year's earlier.
The BID which was supposed to function to help downtown bootstrap itself has done just the opposite. It's a tax dollar black hole that should have been dissolved long ago.
That said, until downtown can reinvent itself in terms of space size, focus, and landlord attitude little significant change will occur. Focus on the river, developing smaller rentable footprints to non-retail food, arts, entertainment, and professional space remains an achievable track to bring life back to downtown. Not just Patchogue, but Bayshore, Port Jefferson, Greenport, and Huntington have all shown that this can be a successful model to follow. Maybe, only then, will boutique and national retail return to downtown.
--Mitchell Hagler
President, Richard York of Riverhead, Inc.
(dba) Richard York Shoes
Southampton, NY
Downtown Riverhead : 2/20/2010
I began working in the Riverhead Grill in 1966 and from my little corner of the world, Main Street was a thriving, busy, wonderful place to be. In 1973 I bought the Grill and poured my heart and soul into it. I also saw the Mom and Pop stores leave and sell their properties to absentee landlords. In the early 80's we had the Merchants Assoc. meet in the diner and I belonged to the Chamber of Commerce, all the time fighting for Main Street. But it kept dying, little by little. Rose Jewelers, Edward Archers, Carl & Bobs, and finally Swezey's Dept. Store. I belong to the BID now and still have a little spot of hope left with the recent election of Sean Walter, Supervisor. He is an inspiration.
There are good, solid businesses on Main St. (family owned) and a few of the new ones joining to make Main St. a destination to visit. But there is that "big, black hole" in the heart of our downtown with the "big, old box stores" that need major improvements. Patchogue has no problem tearing down buildings that are "eyesores". Green grass would look better than what we have. Thank goodness for the East End Arts Council. They are the only breath of life in that area. And we have the beautiful Peconic River. I live in the parking lot behind the Grill, facing the River. Believe me, after being on Main Street for 40 years, don't waste your time. Until the absentee landlords do something about these buildings, everything else is a waste of time and energy. Liz Strebel
Good Luck : 2/19/2010
In order to form a downtown civic association in riverhead you would have to fight tooth and nail against riverheads political machine, which would not be an easy task. Mike Brewer did a fantastic job for his area and I applaud him for that. He took on Southamptons mightiest and won.
My suggestion to those who want to pursue this quest for an association is - Don't make friends with the town board, don't make friends with the main-street slum landlords, don't make friends with the corrupt town police, and don't make friends with the behind closed door political cronies of riverhead. For a list of the latter just look at the town publishings of the major political donaters, you know the ones that want to make you think their mountainous charitable donations are genuinely made from the heart when actually they are a big tax write offs to benefit themselves or their corporation.
In conclusion, you will need to know the law or you will be wasting your time. AND WHY NOT?
Your truly, Johnny Nova
thanks & meeting location : 2/18/2010
Thank you!
Anyone interested in attending the meeting on Tuesday, Feb 23 at 7PM, please note that the meeting location has been changed to the Riverhead Free Library.
