Riverhead zoning board rules against allowing repo business at West Main Street site

An auto repossession business is not allowed to operate out of the former Blackman Plumbing Supply building on West Main Street in Riverhead, the Zoning Board of Appeals ruled on Thursday.

The ZBA denied the application of Fisher Realty Group, which owns the property at 940-946 West Main Street, to allow an auto repo business at the site. Fisher Realty has leased the site to the auto repo business Island Recovery despite not having town approval, resulting in tickets being issued by the town for violations of town law. Those matters are pending in town Justice Court.

Fisher Realty’s representatives argued that the repo business operated out of an office — an allowed use in the underlying Peconic River Community zoning district — and the outdoor storage of repossessed vehicles was an accessory use of the property allowed under the zoning district. 

But the ZBA did not buy that argument. Zoning Board member John Porchia, reading the ZBA’s decision, said the office is the use “accessory and subordinate to the storage of the vehicles” for a repo business.

“The automobile repossession use is not a permitted use within the Peconic River Community zoning use district,” he said. 

Blackman Plumbing Supply had used a portion of the property for outdoor storage while operating at the site; Fisher Realty used this fact to support its argument. Porchia, addressing that evidence, said the outdoor storage at the Blackman site was “limited to specific materials related to the plumbing supply business and restricted to a finite area.”

The board’s decision, which received a 5-0 vote, upheld the determination made by the town’s zoning officer, Greg Bergman, who in October denied Fisher’s application to alter a building for the repo business’s use.

The ZBA’s decision came after a contentious hearing earlier this month in which Fisher Realty representatives found themselves on the defensive from questioning by town officials. 

Ray Dickhoff, a representative for Fisher Realty, did not respond to a request for comment today.

Fisher Realty has a separate appeal pending before the ZBA regarding a plan to construct a self storage building and industrial building on the property. The total area of that development would be roughly 200,000 square feet — roughly 45,000 square feet larger than allowed on the property under the town’s regulations. Fisher Realty would need three substantial variances from the ZBA to make that project happen. The plan was so beyond the town’s regulations that Bergman last year said the plan would be an “overdevelopment” of the property. 

But while that appeal had a public hearing scheduled for Thursday’s ZBA meeting, Fisher Realty came in with a revised plan its representatives said resolved issues raised at prior meetings. Deputy Town Attorney Annemarie Prudenti said the town’s planning staff will create a report for ZBA members to review the revised site plan.