"Someone is walking by. .. what are they able to see?" John Shaka, chairman of the Sag Harbor Village Planning Board, asked on September 22. "Are we walling off the water?"
He was asking about 2 Main Street, the horseshoe-shaped building most of the village calls Fort Apache, and the Water Street Shops behind it at 22 Long Island Avenue. Across the street, 1 Main Street has been dark since the Corner Bar's final service last winter. A reopening was expected in August and never happened. Both addresses sit where Main Street turns toward the harbor and Steinbeck Park. Both changed ownership in 2026. Neither will look the way it did a year ago.
The Corner is waiting on a tenant. Fort Apache is waiting on a long review process that has only just started. That review has already moved the debate away from square footage and toward sightlines, the part of the plan that matters to anyone walking down Main Street.
The Corner, After Forty-Some Years and One Summer
Jim Smyth opened the Corner Bar in 1978 and ran it until he died in 2017. The East Hampton Star reported on February 12, 2026, that the bar had closed after a final Sunday service, and named Hildreth Real Estate Investors as the likely buyer.
That same February, Kelly and John Piccinnini bought the business in partnership with Hildreth, which owns the building. They talked about keeping the affordable, family-friendly, down-to-earth atmosphere Smyth was known for. They hosted friends and family for lunch in the renovated room on August 5 and 6 and set a grand opening for August 7. That morning they postponed to "take a few more days to fine-tune the details."
The doors stayed closed. On September 3, the couple said they were parting ways with the building's owners and would not open The Corner. "Ultimately, the parties' visions for The Corner were not aligned," their statement read. They are now focused on The Clam Bar and Sett Coffee.
In its own statement, Hildreth said it "intends to keep The Corner active" and wants "a new full-time tenant/operator to the space by the spring of 2027, if not sooner." As of early October, no new operator has been announced. So the earliest target for the room's next chapter is the start of next season.
Fort Apache Changed Hands Through a Loan
The story across the street comes out of a 2024 purchase. A developer bought 2 Main Street and 22 Long Island Avenue that year for a combined $30 million. Mavik Capital, a New York City real estate investment firm, was one of the developer's original lenders. In May 2026, according to the Star, Mavik took back both lots after the developer defaulted on a $5 million loan it held.
The developer's earlier applications would have renovated both buildings and added second stories, for nearly 50,000 square feet in total. The Star reported that the public widely panned those plans in 2024 and that they now appear to have been dropped. Mavik's plan takes a different approach. It would tear down both buildings and build two new two-story buildings, connected by a glass-covered walkway across what is now the parking lot.
The businesses there now are the ones most residents know by name. Fort Apache houses K Pasa, Cruust and Yummylicious. The Water Street Shops, once home to a 7-Eleven, now hold Cluckman's, Sing City and the Harbor Shop convenience store, among others. Project architect Chris DiSunno, whose own office is in the Long Island Avenue building, said the owners are "working hard to retain all the current tenants." Representatives also said they would give priority to year-round businesses when they fill empty retail space.
What Gets Bigger, and by How Much
The 27,220-square-foot figure only means something next to what is there now.
| Today | Proposed | |
|---|---|---|
| Total floor area | 22,708 sq ft | 27,220 sq ft |
| Landscaped area | 412 sq ft | nearly 4,000 sq ft |
| Lot coverage | 22,058 sq ft | 25,649 sq ft, against 29,040 allowed |
| Prior 2024 concept | nearly 50,000 sq ft |
That works out to 4,512 more square feet than the current buildings, a little over half of what the 2024 concept sought. The proposed mix includes three restaurants and three retail stores, plus space for a dry cleaner or cobbler, a general store, a professional office and a medical office. One of the restaurants would sit in the rooftop garden space. 27east noted this would add another harbor-view dining room, in the spirit of The Faraway and The Beacon.
The Planning Board's September 22 agenda describes the project as two buildings of 16,518 and 10,701 square feet. Parking counts don't match across sources. The agenda lists 50 spaces. 27east describes 40 existing spaces plus 30 new ones, mostly in a below-ground garage. That gap should close as the formal application takes shape.
The Real Argument Is About Sightlines
The biggest change for anyone on the sidewalk is where the buildings would sit. DiSunno's plan moves Fort Apache 40 feet back from the Main Street property line and puts a sloped lawn in front. He describes it as a place to eat an ice cream or drink a coffee on the grass. The owners' representatives said the planning put priority on pedestrian connections to Steinbeck Park and the waterfront.
Height is the issue running the other way. FEMA rules require anything new on these lots to be raised. DiSunno pointed out that this would put the buildings' mass up in the tree canopy and away from the street. Shaka saw a risk to harbor views, which he said are protected in the village code through the waterfront overlay district covering these properties. Attorney Denise Schoen of the Adam Miller Group, representing Mavik, answered: "While the views may differ, they will still exist."
The overlays on this one site show why review will take time. The property falls within the village Historic District, the Village Business Zoning District, the Waterfront Overlay District and the Tidal Flood Hazard Overlay District. The facades haven't been designed yet. DiSunno said the team is working toward a separate facade for each tenant, in keeping with the character of Main Street.
Where the Process Goes From Here
Mavik's plan is at the pre-submission stage, which comes before a formal application. Schoen acknowledged the owners will need variances from the Zoning Board of Appeals to get around the village's superstore clause, which bars buildings over 10,000 square feet. The Long Island Avenue building is already over that size, but it would lose its grandfathered status once it comes down. Parking variances will be needed too, even with the added spaces, along with environmental review under SEQRA, which 27east described as time-consuming.
Here is how the year has unfolded on both corners so far:
- 2024: The developer buys both Fort Apache parcels for $30 million. The developer's nearly 50,000-square-foot plans draw wide public criticism.
- February 2026: The Corner Bar closes. The Piccinninis and Hildreth take on the business.
- May 2026: Mavik takes back 2 Main Street and 22 Long Island Avenue.
- August 5–7, 2026: Friends-and-family lunches at The Corner, then the grand opening is postponed.
- September 3, 2026: The Piccinninis step away from The Corner.
- September 22, 2026: Mavik's teardown-and-rebuild concept gets its first Planning Board look.
- October 27, 2026, 5 p.m.: The next pre-submission conference on the Fort Apache plan.
- Spring 2027: Hildreth's target for a new full-time operator at The Corner.
The October 27 session is a continuation of an early conversation, not a vote. Board members raised size and views in September. 27east reported that Shaka called the plan big and worried about losing views of the park and the water. Village agendas and minutes are posted on Sag Harbor's public meeting portal. The September 22 agenda is a good place to start for anyone who wants to read the project description in the village's own words before the next session.
For this winter, then, The Corner stays dark until a new operator is named. K Pasa, Cruust, Yummylicious, Cluckman's, Sing City and the Harbor Shop stay where they are while the Fort Apache review continues. The next public discussion of what the foot of Main Street could become is on the Planning Board agenda for October 27 at 5 p.m.
Jane Babcook has lived in Sag Harbor for more than 30 years and has watched many plans for the village's waterfront blocks go through these same boards. If you have questions about how a review like this one works, or what it could mean for property near the foot of Main Street, contact Jane.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.