Yoga Classes at Surf Lodge?
Do yoga classes represent an expansion of use for a motel?
That was the question before the East Hampton Town Zoning Board of Appeals on Tuesday night, and the Surf Lodge in Montauk was the applicant awaiting an answer. The question is important to the popular resort because its Edgemere Street site is in a neighborhood zoned for residential use only. It is allowed to do business as a resort and restaurant because it was built long before the town’s zoning laws were written, but it is not allowed to expand the business.
According to the town’s Building Department, if “patrons not staying at the motel” attend the classes, then yes, it is an expansion. In a letter to Richard A. Hammer of Biondo & Hammer dated Nov. 13, 2015, Ann M. Glennon, the town’s principal building inspector, found that opening the classes to those not staying at the lodge would “increase the capacity of use, which would affect parking, wastewater, and the disposal system, which would then require site plan review for the use.”
She did not dispute that the classes are, in and of themselves, an allowed use for a motel.
Tuesday’s hearing was over an appeal by the owners, hoping to reverse Ms. Glennon’s finding. Mr. Hammer told the board that the classes, which are free, were a public service. “Classes are for the motel guests, but the public is invited to attend,” he said, calling it “an incidental benefit to the public.” He noted that the owners of Surf Lodge, who include the restaurateur Jayma Cardoso, and the Internet entrepreneur Michael Walrath, have been working with the town to improve the site, particularly the septic system. The lodge borders Fort Pond.
Cate Rogers, who was chairing the board that night due to the absence of John Whelan, said, “You’re increasing parking required. It would require site plan review.”
“I don’t understand,” said Roy Dalene, a board member. “You can charge and lose money. You can charge and make money. What makes not charging an accessory use?”
John Leonard, an attorney representing Hamptons Gym Corp., a for-profit company that operates three gyms from Southampton to East Hampton, also spoke on the motel’s behalf, challenging the board to “see the code as intended, and as it was written.”
The board will have 62 days to contemplate the question.