Huntington Town Board approves permit to build Cornerstone Melville

The Huntington Town Board by a split-vote on Tuesday approved the issuance of a special-use permit to build Cornerstone Melville, a planned $85 million, four-story, luxury mixed-use community on the north side of Baylis Road, east of Maxess Road.

The town board voted 3-2 at a meeting. Brooke Lupinacci, a Conservative, and Jen Hebert, a Democrat, voted no.

It is the second project approved under the Melville Town Center Overlay District. The development would bring a total of 168 studio, one- and two-bedroom rentals and two townhome-style residences that will be for sale, as well as more than 20,000 square feet of office and retail space, to 115 Baylis Rd.

Anthony Bartone, CEO of Terwilliger & Bartone, the development company behind the project, applauded the town board for approving what he called a "transformative project" and thanked supporters in a phone interview with Newsday after the vote.

"This was Step 1 in the process, and there are many more to be completed," Bartone said. "But with this approval we’re hopeful that perhaps we can commence construction sometime in 2027. That might be optimistic, but I’d rather be optimistic."

Steel 75 Maxess LLC received approvals in April to build the first development approved under the overlay district. It will include 400 housing units in several buildings to be built at Maxess Road and Corporate Center Drive.

When the overlay district was approved in December 2024, it had a provision that said the town would pause accepting new residential applications once submissions reached 400 units. At the August town board meeting, some residents said they thought a pause meant the town would wait until 400 units were built and occupied before deciding whether to allow more development.

Supervisor Ed Smyth said after Tuesday’s meeting that the pause was meant to control the pace at which applications came before the town. 

"We're starting to get some momentum for the Melville Town Center, which is long overdue," Smyth said. 

In voting no, Hebert said she was not opposed to the project but "I don’t feel like we’ve had a pause."

Lupinacci declined to elaborate on why she voted no.

In a text to Newsday, the Sweet Hollow Civic Association said: "We hope that the concerns that the school district has articulated will be addressed," referring to a letter read in part by Half Hollow Hills Central School District Superintendent John O’Farrell at the September town board meeting. The letter outlined concerns including the meaning of a pause and the "actual cumulative impacts" of any development within the school district.

Michael McCarthy, the Huntington-based attorney for the developer, said he does not expect there to be any more public hearings.

"Now that Cornerstone Melville has received a special use permit from the town board, the next step is to finalize site plan approval and then move forward with the building permit application," McCarthy said. 

By Deborah S. Morris

deborah.morris@newsday.comdsvmorris

Deborah Morris is a native Long Islander and covers the town of Huntington.