Hotel Indigo owner proposes assisted-living facility next to Riverhead hotel

The owner and operator of Hotel Indigo East End has proposed a senior assisted-living facility on Route 25, next to the hotel.

Jaral Properties, a Mineola-based company, wants to build a three-story, 98,694-square-foot assisted-living facility on a vacant, wooded 4.14-acre parcel just east of the hotel property, according to an application filed with the Riverhead Planning Department on Aug. 28. The project does not comply with the site’s Destination Retail Center zoning and would require a change of zone to move forward.

Rob Salvatico, president of Jaral Properties — which also owns and operates Riverhead’s Holiday Inn Express — said the facility would serve the area’s aging population. Residents would live independently and receive “concierge-level” support for their medical and other living needs, he said. 

“We know Riverhead to be underserved at that level of care, and we think it’s an ideal location, given it’s relatively lightly trafficked [and] it’s approximate to the [Long Island Expressway],” Salvatico said. “And our knowledge of the market, in general, is that Long Island is underserved in that space.”

“I think this could be a win,” Salvatico said. He added that the company wants to undertake the project with the local community’s “understanding” and “support.”

The town is considering a rezone of the site to allow for the project, according to Dawn Thomas, Riverhead Town’s top planning official. The property’s Destination Retail Center zoning district “doesn’t make a ton of sense there,” she said. The parcel abuts Tanger Outlets, which was the impetus for creating the zoning district.

Thomas said the site’s proximity to Route 58’s shops and medical services make it a good location for senior housing. The property can also easily connect to the sewer district, which is necessary for high-density housing, she added.

“I think housing for seniors to age in place is critical, and you see this kind of housing all over states like Florida, where people can move into a place and be as independent as possible for as long as they can,” Thomas said.

Riverhead Town’s updated comprehensive plan recommends modifying zoning laws to allow more assisted living facilities and retirement communities. 

The plan’s primary recommendation is to create an overlay district in parts of Route 58 for high-density assisted-living communities. The concept would allow developers to purchase development rights from farmland and open space in exchange for increased building density.

The commercial corridor’s proximity to Peconic Bay Medical Center and other healthcare facilities — as well as the ability to connect into the town’s wastewater treatment systems — makes it an ideal location for the overlay district, according to the plan.

Thomas said planning officials are working on legislation to create the overlay district. The town is consulting with developers who are considering different projects within the town so that “when we do a rezone, that we do it in a way that works,” she said.

One proposal for an assisted-living community off Harrison Avenue, known as Concord Senior Communities, is “pretty close” to filing an application, Thomas said.

Peconic Bay Medical Center’s Chief Financial Officer Michael O’Donnell said during a zoning board hearing earlier this year that the hospital plans to construct assisted living and workforce housing on the 24-acre former McGann-Mercy High School campus, which it purchased in 2020. No application has yet been filed for that project.

“There’s really very few alternatives currently, other than the very expensive Peconic Landing,” Thomas said, referring to the Greenport assisted living facility. “I think aging in place is important to people, and I think Riverhead doesn’t have enough options.”