Developers plan duplex-style rentals in Wyandanch on former church-owned lot

Developers are moving forward with plans for 64 duplex-style rental units on a wooded lot, part of which was once owned by the First Church of Wyandanch Ministries.

Bridgehampton Equities and Rabo Patton Developers LLC plan to create two-bedroom rentals with garages on 3½ acres near the corner of Patton Avenue and Straight Path, about a quarter-mile from the church.

Bridgehampton Equities, a Southampton-based investment firm, received site plan approval from the Town of Babylon in late August and expects to get approval to start clearing land this fall before construction starts early next year, CEO Jason Zimmerman said.

The sale is the latest example of new housing slated for land formerly owned by a religious organization. Concern Housing plans 176 apartments on part of the Sisters of St. Joseph's campus in Brentwood; D&F Development Group is working on 80 senior apartments in the parking lot of Refuge Apostolic Church of Christ in Freeport; and Georgica Green Ventures received funding to build 88 affordable rentals and condos on land owned by the First Baptist Church of Riverhead.

Zimmerman said other state and private investment in Wyandanch gave him confidence to build housing in the area. About a mile north, near Wyandanch's Long Island Rail Road station, Albanese Organization has built about 600 mixed-income apartments at Wyandanch Village.

"The access to the train and to the Southern State Parkway made it a good location for accessibility," Zimmerman said. "A lot of the driving force to my decision was the other activity in Wyandanch."

Beyond those apartments, part of the broader decades-long Wyandanch Rising redevelopment plan, an investment firm recently announced plans for a $290 million industrial park in the area.

Court approves sale

State Supreme Court Justice Linda Kevins in Suffolk County approved the church's $1.7 million land sale to Bridgehampton Equities last month, and the church plans to use a portion of the proceeds to pay off a roughly $577,000 mortgage on its church property, according to court documents.

An appraisal submitted to the court valued the land at $1.5 million based on comparable sales.

State courts and the New York Attorney General's Office must approve religious institutions' sale of assets and show congregational approval for the sale.

A church also must demonstrate how it will benefit from the sale, said Jonathan Robert Nelson, a Manhattan-based attorney who represented the church in the transaction. The church bought the land decades ago but had not developed the wooded property, he said.

"That test is easier to pass when the property was not being used for religious purposes but instead was for investment," Nelson said.

The funds will help the church pay down debts and provide funds for ministry, he said.

Church leaders were not immediately available to comment.

Zimmerman said he tentatively expects rents for the two-bedroom units to range from about $2,500 to $3,500 when the complex opens in early 2028.

Across the street, at 7 Patton Ave., there's a recently built 14-unit rental complex that leased quickly with asking rents at $3,200, he said.

"It was a little test for us to see what the market would call for," Zimmerman said. "They seemed to have leased up before they were even completely built."

Bridgehampton Equities' portion of the project, which includes 51 rentals, 10 of which will qualify as affordable housing, received preliminary approval from the Town of Babylon Industrial Development Agency earlier this year, pending a Sept. 23 closing on the package of tax benefits.

Rabo Patton Developers is separately seeking Babylon IDA tax incentives on 13 units, including three affordable units, according to the IDA.

The Babylon IDA supported the project because it would deliver much-needed housing and community benefits as well as additional tax payments beyond the roughly $2,800 the church paid last year, said Keith Davies, CEO of the Babylon IDA.

Church land not used for religious or charitable purposes can incur property taxes.

"The development will transform a vacant property that currently generates minimal tax revenue into a productive site that immediately contributes significant revenue to local taxing jurisdictions while delivering meaningful economic benefits to Wyandanch and the surrounding area," Davies said in an emailed statement.

The developers also have committed to adding sidewalks and lighting, he said.

The Babylon IDA gave preliminary approval for a package of tax incentives for Bridgehampton Equities, including a $682,500 sales tax exemption and a $157,500 mortgage recording tax exemption. The package includes a 15-year payment in lieu of taxes, or PILOT, agreement in which Bridgehampton Equities will pay $4.35 million, or $290,000 a year, for its portion of the site.