Village of Sag Harbor, NY HBBC Overlay District

In 2019, the Historically Black Beachfront Communities (HBBC) were added to the National Register of Historic Places stating, "NEW YORK, SUFFOLK COUNTY, Sag Harbor Hills, Azurest, and Ninevah Beach Subdivisions Historic District, Roughly Richards Dr., Hempstead St., Lincoln St., Harding Terr., & Terry Dr., Sag Harbor, SG100004217, LISTED, 7/10/2019." The Sag Harbor Hills, Azurest, and Ninevah Beach Subdivisions (HBBC) District is located in the eastern portion of Sag Harbor, an incorporated village within the Towns of Southampton and East Hampton in Suffolk County, New York. Sag Harbor Village is situated on the north shore of Long Island's South Fork, a peninsula that juts off the larger island into the Atlantic Ocean.

The HBBC District is located just east of the Village of Sag Harbor Historic District and encompasses the full extent of the self-contained planned resort communities of Azurest, Sag Harbor Hills, and Ninevah Beach. Comprising approximately 154.22 acres, the District is characterized by mid-century African-American suburban resort development and positioned to take advantage of beach access along the peaceful Sag Harbor Bay. The District is situated northeast of Hampton Street and Hempstead Street and extends to the shores of Sag Harbor Bay. The District is bounded on the north by the natural boundary of Sag Harbor Bay, and to the south by Hempstead Street and Hampton Street. Hampton Street is a main local thoroughfare that cuts through largely wooded portions of East Hampton and becomes a two-lane rural highway (East Hampton—Sag Harbor Turnpike [114]), terminating southeast of Sag Harbor in downtown East Hampton at Montauk Highway (New York State Route 27). To the west, the District is bounded by lines of residences along Richards, Milton, and Cuffee Drives, and to the east by New York State-owned wooded lands along Little Northwest and Rattlesnake Creeks. The presence of woods to the east, woods along Hampton Street, and woods throughout undeveloped lots within the District create a sense of privacy and seclusion for the neighborhoods.

The limits of the District are drawn around the outer edges of four mapped subdivisions, as they were filed in phases with Suffolk County beginning in the 1940s: Azurest, Sag Harbor Beach Club, Sag Harbor Hills, and Ninevah Beach (See Section 9, Page 43 for a map). The Sag Harbor Beach Club and Sag Harbor Hills ultimately merged into one neighborhood identity under the name of the latter. Each subdivision is essentially defined by the long, north-south angled roads which connect Hempstead Avenue and the beach. Azurest, the westernmost subdivision, includes both sides of Richards Drive and Cuffee Drive on the west merging into Milton Avenue to both sides of Walker Avenue on the east, and both sides of Meredith Avenue in between, all terminating in Terry Drive. Sag Harbor Beach Club includes both sides of Beach Avenue and both sides of Harbor Avenue, terminating in Soundview Drive. Sag Harbor Hills includes both sides of Hillside Drive East and West, terminating in Ninevah Place. Ninevah Beach includes both sides of Lincoln Street, terminating in Harding Terrace. Due to its distinctive histories of planning and development, HBBC is spatially and physically distinguished from other areas of Sag Harbor village.

The buildings within the Village of Sag Harbor Historic District are typically closely built colonial and 19th-century timber frame structures on small irregular lots within a relatively flat terrain. In contrast, the neighborhood character of HBBC is characterized by less densely packed, freestanding mid-century residences on larger suburban house lots within a hilly terrain. The presence of consistent lot sizes with small and medium-sized single and two-story homes with minimal clearing of woods contribute to the relaxed sense of community character. The calm waterfront and predominantly wooded setting of HBBC create a sense of refuge and respite away from the busy traffic on Hampton Street and commercial activity around the nearby port in downtown Sag Harbor. The bay beach, which is calm and often attracts private boaters for short stays, is a defining feature of the HBBC District's setting. All design and planning for the residential subdivisions were done in favor of beach access.

Although listed on the National Register, the HBBC Overlay District is not being added to the Village of Sag Harbor Historic District at this time. This legislation allows for distinct zoning regulations that will allow redevelopment, while at the same time ensuring a significant limit on the expansion of single-family residences that will maintain the community character of this important area.

The HBBC Overlay District shall have the same dimensional regulations provided for the R-20 District pursuant to Village Code § 300-4.3 and the Table of Dimensional Regulations, Village Code Chapter 300, Attachment 2, except as otherwise provided herein.

The maximum gross floor area in HBBC Overlay District shall be calculated pursuant to Village Code § 300-9.10, except that the maximum gross floor area shall in no case exceed 4,000 regardless of the size of the lot. The maximum 4,000-square-foot gross floor area limitation shall also apply to lots that have merged with neighboring lots.

The roads within the HBBC Overlay District shall not be improved with sidewalks.

Impervious driveways are prohibited.

Properties within the HBBC Overlay District shall have no more than three accessory buildings or structures.

Photo or video evidence of a violation of an HBBC Overlay District provision shall be sufficient to warrant the institution of an investigation by the Village as to whether a violation has occurred.