Coast Guard’s Westhampton Homes Head to Auction Block

The Coast Guard’s motto is Semper Paratus, meaning “always ready.” Nothing could be more true of the military branch’s long-standing desire to offload vacant housing in the Hamptons.

A 14-acre site on Stewart Avenue in Westhampton is set to hit the auction block courtesy of the General Services Administration on Aug. 7, 27East reported. Once home to families of Coast Guard members, the site has been empty for years, save for the squatters rumored to still take up occupancy from time to time.

Auctions have been attempted for the site before, to no avail. The dilapidated site, which has 24 duplexes, two single-family units and an office/workshop, seemed to be headed towards the auction block in 2018, only for the process to be stalled repeatedly.

The properties on the site date back to 1977, but only half were renovated in 2011 for asbestos remediation, while the other half were not. While most units are said to be habitable, the rundown aesthetics are a blight for the neighborhood.

The site could be an affordable housing development opportunity for the Town of Southampton, but only if it can afford to stay in the bidding process. The town has already seen one attempt to buy the site rejected.

Bidding for the auction will start at $5 million, but the town is barred from paying more than its 2021 appraisal of the property, which is what it used as the basis on the rejected offer; the amount of that appraisal is unclear.

Even if the town wins the bidding process, there would still be plenty of ground for Southampton to cover, including required public hearings and its own process to confirm the purchase. That doesn’t jibe with the auction’s rules, which require the town to take ownership if it wins the auction.

Should Southampton win the auction and actually take ownership of the site, it would likely partner with a nonprofit on an affordable housing project, according to a town councilperson. The town could use money from the Community Housing Fund for such a development.

— Holden Walter-Warner