State officials have approved $2 million to build a cultural and arts center in East Patchogue, which officials say is critical to revitalizing the hamlet’s aging business district.
The funds will help build the arts center, which is expected to cost $3.5 million, as part of a larger effort to extend Patchogue’s successful downtown transformation to its neighboring community.
The $47 million revitalization of East Patchogue will include new apartments, offices and retail on a quarter-mile stretch from the Patchogue Village Line east to Grove and Avery avenues, Brookhaven Town and Suffolk County officials said.
The roughly 6,000-square-foot arts center will feature art galleries and possibly space for live performances such as poetry readings, said Lori Devlin, president of the nonprofit Patchogue Arts Council, which will manage the facility. The center will be built in two houses on a 4,000-square-foot lot purchased by Plainview developer Rechler Equity Partners and donated to the city, Devlin said.
Devlin said the cultural council would lease the site from the city for “a symbolic sum.”
East Patchogue residents hope the arts center will do for the village what the reopening of the Patchogue Theater for the Performing Arts in 1998 did for downtown Patchogue, which has since become a model for downtown revitalization.
“This has always been a dream of the community,” said Neil Foley, a Brookhaven councilman who represents East Patchogue on the city council, of the arts center.
“We all watched the village of Patchogue go through this transformation,” he added. “Now it’s East Patchogue’s turn…”
Suffolk County contributed $800,000 toward the center’s cost from federal American Rescue Plan funds, Devlin said.
The arts council hopes to raise additional funds to spend $4 million on the project, “and really build something really beautiful,” she added.
In a statement, Governor Kathy Hochul called the project “a cornerstone for creativity and education.”
Developers involved in the East Patchgoue revitalization plan must donate land or funds for public use to be eligible for Brookhaven’s zoning approval, officials said.
Rechler spokesman David Chauvin said the company plans to begin construction next month on a 91-unit Greybarn-Patchogue apartment complex on the former site of the Mediterranean Manor catering hall, which was closed and demolished.
The arts center will be at least partially opened by June 2026 and fully completed by the end of 2027, Devlin said.
Devlin said the arts center would fill a need for a downtown art gallery and theater that could attract a wide range of visual artists and performers.
“There’s not much in this area right now,” said Devlin, who is also Patchogue’s town clerk. “There are a few theaters in Suffolk, but there’s not a lot of modern theater.”
State officials have approved $2 million to build a cultural and arts center in East Patchogue, which officials say is critical to revitalizing the hamlet’s aging business district.
The funds will help build the arts center, which is expected to cost $3.5 million, as part of a larger effort to extend Patchogue’s successful downtown transformation to its neighboring community.
The $47 million revitalization of East Patchogue will include new apartments, offices and retail on a quarter-mile stretch from the Patchogue Village Line east to Grove and Avery avenues, Brookhaven Town and Suffolk County officials said.
The roughly 6,000-square-foot arts center will feature art galleries and possibly space for live performances such as poetry readings, said Lori Devlin, president of the nonprofit Patchogue Arts Council, which will manage the facility. The center will be built in two houses on a 4,000-square-foot lot purchased by Plainview developer Rechler Equity Partners and donated to the city, Devlin said.
Devlin said the cultural council would lease the site from the city for “a symbolic sum.”
East Patchogue residents hope the arts center will do for the village what the reopening of the Patchogue Theater for the Performing Arts in 1998 did for downtown Patchogue, which has since become a model for downtown revitalization.
“This has always been a dream of the community,” said Neil Foley, a Brookhaven councilman who represents East Patchogue on the city council, of the arts center.
“We all watched the village of Patchogue go through this transformation,” he added. “Now it’s East Patchogue’s turn…”
Suffolk County contributed $800,000 toward the center’s cost from federal American Rescue Plan funds, Devlin said.
The arts council hopes to raise additional funds to spend $4 million on the project, “and really build something really beautiful,” she added.
In a statement, Governor Kathy Hochul called the project “a cornerstone for creativity and education.”
Developers involved in the East Patchgoue revitalization plan must donate land or funds for public use to be eligible for Brookhaven’s zoning approval, officials said.
Rechler spokesman David Chauvin said the company plans to begin construction next month on a 91-unit Greybarn-Patchogue apartment complex on the former site of the Mediterranean Manor catering hall, which was closed and demolished.
The arts center will be at least partially opened by June 2026 and fully completed by the end of 2027, Devlin said.
Devlin said the arts center would fill a need for a downtown art gallery and theater that could attract a wide range of visual artists and performers.
“There’s not much in this area right now,” said Devlin, who is also Patchogue’s town clerk. “There are a few theaters in Suffolk, but there’s not a lot of modern theater.”
