Rare Opportunity

Given the region’s continuing affordable housing crisis — home prices are still reasonable for wealthy Manhattan part-timers who are in the market but are well beyond the reach of most working families looking for their one and only residence, and year-round rental properties are overpriced and have largely evaporated — the U.S. Coast Guard housing site off Stewart Avenue in Westhampton is like manna from heaven.

In a region where developable land is growing scarce, here is a solid 14 acres that is already built out with increased but tolerable density of 52 units, including duplexes. For Southampton Town, entering a period where it will have money to spend on affordable housing projects, it would be a layup, if it can work with partners to acquire the land from the federal government.

For a time, it appeared that the town had only passing interest. Now, it seems that there is a heightened sense that recognizes just how well this opportunity lines up with the town’s immediate needs. It would need money — $15 million is a reasonable ask for 14 acres with 52 units — but won’t have to bother with troublesome zone changes.

It’s also clear that all levels of government now see this as a rare opportunity. Suffolk County and town officials can turn talk into action. Governor Kathy Hochul, who came into office pushing hard for more housing in communities throughout the state, can point to a high-profile project in an affluent community, if she can help put a deal together with the state as an active funding partner. And the federal government has an opportunity, for once, not to simply stay focused on the bottom line, but to find a solution that’s both in the public interest and makes fiscal sense.

There is some grousing now about details: talk of moderate income housing at the site, and possibly using caps on resale values on some units to keep them affordable, which makes them a less attractive investment for the homebuyers. Any talk of “affordable” raises some hackles, though at a time when doctors, teachers and other professionals are among the year-round residents who are getting priced out, it’s time for most everyone’s fears about slums to be abated.

The feds have now suspended the planned auction indefinitely, which suggests that all sides are amenable to further discussion, and a creative solution involving Washington, D.C., and Albany could well be in the works. It feels a little rushed, and that’s because this is all reactionary — nobody really took this prime opportunity seriously until the eve of a General Services Administration auction that nearly sent it into the waiting arms of private developers.

The moment has been seized, better late than never, and this is a chance for Southampton Town to set the tone for how the new Community Housing Fund might be put to good use. It will potentially create more than four dozen new affordable options for local families who desperately need one. That’s not a solution, but it’s definitely a start.