Riverhead issues 100 citations for 10 downtown properties

After a “major crackdown,” Riverhead officials issued more than 100 violations to downtown property owners whose properties were riddled with animal infestations, exposed asbestos, leaky roofs, unsafe electrical wiring, cracked foundation walls and other problems, Newsday reported. Some of those buildings had not been inspected in a decade and had deteriorated to the point that they were “unsafe for potential businesses looking to relocate to Riverhead’s downtown,” supervisor Laura Jens-Smith said at a press conference. Riverhead officials declined to identify the properties or their owners at the press conference, but Town Attorney Robert Kozakiewicz said that three of the violating properties are at 53-55-59 Main Street, 117 East Main Street and 103-105 East Main Street, all of which are vacant, according to the Riverhead News Review. Vacant buildings have drawn the attention of local officials like councilwoman Catherine Kent. “Some owners seem to sit on their buildings, asking high rent and waiting for revitalization, and yet their buildings actually hold up revitalization,” she told the outlet. [Newsday]