Calverton Enterprise Park

Riverhead Supervisor Sean Walter said today he has signed the letter of intent with Luminati Aerospace for the sale of nearly all of the town’s remaining acreage at the Calverton Enterprise Park for $40 million.

Riverhead will sign a letter of intent to begin formal negotiations with Luminati Aerospace on the sale of most of its remaining land at the Calverton Enterprise Park for $40 million.

Luminati will pay the town $40 million cash for the town's remaining acreage at the Calverton Enterprise Park, where it will build commercial and military ultralight unmanned aircraft.

After five-and-a-half years and more than $600,000, Riverhead Town is at last in the home stretch of a long, difficult and sometimes contentious process of subdividing, zoning and marketing the remaining land it owns at the former Grumman plant in Calverton.

Luminati's ultralight aircraft, capable of perpetual flight — being developed to bring internet connectivity to unserved regions of the world — also has "obvious" military applications for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance purposes. The company, now readying to move into a much larger facility at EPCAL, will seek defense contracts, its founder said.

Despite members still having lots of questions about the unusual plan, novel zoning concept and out-of-the-ordinary process, the Riverhead Planning Board last night gave its "non-binding" blessing to a concept plan for the subdivision of 2,234 town-owned acres in the Enterprise Park at Calverton

The firm headed by former Gov. George Pataki, who is now exploring a run for the White House, has informed Riverhead "they decline to work with the town," according to Supervisor Sean Walter, who pushed for the deal. On Feb. 18, a three-member majority of the town board tabled a resolution authorizing an agreement with the NYC consulting firm, amid concerns about commission fees and lack of time to fully review the document.