The Most-Read Hamptons Real Estate Stories of 2022

On the East End, there is rarely a dearth of real estate news, and it’s not always the biggest sales that get readers’ attention. As we usher in a new year, let’s first take a look back at the year that was. Here are the most-read stories in Hamptons real estate on Behind The Hedges in 2022:

1) Hampton Bays Waterfront Restaurant, Marina Sells for $6 Million

When news broke in September that a waterfront building and marina at the end of Dune Road in Hampton Bays had sold in an off-market deal over the summer, it quite literally went viral. Situated just outside the Shinnecock Inlet next to Sunday’s On the Bay and Oakland’s restaurants on Dune Road, the 1.6-acre harborfront property features panoramic views of Shinnecock Bay.

“This spectacular location will once again be an all-day meeting place for East End residents — year-round, seasonal, vacationers and day-trippers alike,” says Hal Zwick and Jeff Sztorc of Compass Commercial, who brought the buyers after the owner contacted him.

We learned recently that EHP Hospitality Group, a rapidly growing collection of resorts, marinas, and restaurants in the Hamptons, bought the property — under a separate limited liability company. Last year, it bought The Inn Spot in Hampton Bays, a bayfront hotel and restaurant and the Dune Road property will be a sister location, described as a  “hangout” that will be called the Dune Spot.

2)Westhampton’s Starr Boggs Sold to Restaurant Group Behind RUMBA, Flora

In February, the legendary Westhampton Beach Starr Boggs restaurant sold after many years on the market and several months of speculation about a sale. The new owners, David and Rachel Hersh of the Rooted Hospitality Group — behind restaurants such as Cowfish and RUMBA, both in Hampton Bays, as well as Flora in Westhampton Beach — bought the spot and quickly turned it into a new restaurant called fauna, which opened just before the summer. A plaque dedicated to the Starr Boggs, the man behind the former restaurant, is on the door to the new restaurant. Sadly, just a few months after the sale, Boggs died.

3) The 21 Most Expensive Hamptons Home Sales of 2021

Apropos of year-in-review pieces, our roundup of the most expensive home sales in 2021 was one of our most-read stories of the year. Revisit the 2021 list to compare it to our 2022 list (coming soon!).

4) ‘Summer House’ Filmed at This $5 Million Hamptons Pad

Bravo’s latest season of Summer House premiered in early 2022, showing how the housemates had spent the summer of 2021.The  season debuted a new home base — a 6,500-square-foot house at 2136 Deerfield Road, in a wooded area between Sag Harbor and Water Mill. Readers from all over the country flocked ot the site to get a more detailed look into the $5 million pad.

5) Nest Seekers Sues Artie and Jason Rabin for Commission in $118.5M Hamptons Sale

A $118.5 million sale in 2021 led Nest Seekers International to file a lawsuit against the property owners, claiming they were owed a real estate brokerage commission. Clothing apparel businessmen Artie Rabin and his son Jason Rabin sold four contiguous properties they owned between them on Cobb Road in Water Mill right before 2021 came ot a close, in what was not only the top sale of 2021, but the second-highest trade in Hamptons history.

6) Under Financial Stress, Ron Perelman Sells Lily Pond Lane Estate for $84.5 Million

The 2022 year started off with what has remained the biggest sale of the year. Ron Perelman, the embattled chairman and chief executive of MacAndrews & Forbes, which most notably oversees Revlon, sold one of his two East Hampton estates for $84.5 million on January 6, 2022. The oceanfront property at 153 Lily Pond Lane went on the market with Sotheby’s International Realty’s Harald Grant for $115 million the previous summer.

7) New Owners Aim to Usher in New Era at Westhampton Beach Movie Theater

The Westhampton Beach movie theater, shuttered for more than two years, is poised to come back to life and readers were understandably excited to hear about those plans in October. New owners are planning for a full renovation, says Inge Debyser, a Westhampton Beach resident and businesswoman, who is one of four partners who made the investment. Their company, Enthusiasm LLC, purchased the theater at 2 Brook Road back in April for $1.15 million — not the biggest commercial sale, but one that will impact the community.

8) Last Call for the Boardy Barn? Legendary Hampton Bays Bar Is Sold

In early May, the Boardy Barn in Hampton Bays, under the same ownership for 50 years, was officially sold. The legendary bar, known for its flowing beer and clientele that spilled out under a striped tent, had been listed for sale in the fall following the death of one of its owners. Patrons were truly saddened to see the news. An end of an era indeed.

9) What Are the Most Expensive Streets in the Hamptons?

The Montauk home Bernie Madoff once owned once again was put on the market in April. Tim Davis of The Corcoran Group and Cody Vichensky of Bespoke, who have the co-exclusive on the property at 216 Montauk Highway, listed it at $22.5 million. It is now asking $16.5 million.

11) $118.5 Million for 4 Hamptons Properties Breaks 2021 Record

News of the biggest sale in 2021 didn’t break until the end of January 2022, when real estate deed transfers revealed the major deal. Four trades composing one of the largest waterfront compounds that exist on the South Fork sold for a combined $118.5 million — which makes it the second-highest trade in Hamptons history.

12) North Fork’s Legends Restaurant, Adjacent Cottages for Sale

North Fork’s popular Legends Restaurant and its adjacent cottages were listed for the first time in decades this summer. Hal Zwick and Jeff Sztorc of the Hamptons commercial real estate team of Compass have the exclusive listing for the year-round family favorite restaurant that sits across the street from the Peconic Bay in New Suffolk in the Town of Southold.

13) Sean Ludwick Out 4 Years After Fatal DWI Crash Sentencing

Sean Ludwick, once a prominent New York City real estate developer, was released from New York State prison in January a little more than four years after he was sentenced for the drunken-driving crash that killed his passenger, Sag Harbor real estate agent Paul Hansen, in 2015. In February, Hedges reported that the State Department of Corrections said he had to be released from custody by law, despite being denied parole three times, because of the number of years he had already served. The Hansen family later spoke out against his release.

14) Water Mill Home With Ties to Rapper 6ix9ine Now for Sale

The controversial rappe 6ix9ine is known for his rainbow-colored hair and facial tattoos and used to go by the name Tekashi69 — if you don’t know, his name is now pronounced simply “six nine.” But did you know he is connected to a Water Mill house that was listed earlier this year?

15) Alec Baldwin Looking to Sell Longtime Hamptons Home for $29M

The actor Alec Baldwin put his Hamptons retreat of more than 25 years up for sale in the fall for $29 million. The 10-acre Stony Hill estate, in what is considered Amagansett’s estate section, overlooks preserved land and horse property and features a 10,000-square-foot modern farmhouse with historical beginnings. It remains on the market.

16) Sant Ambroeus Opens East Hampton Restaurant

Sant Ambroeus, the Milanese-style coffee bar and restaurant, opened its doors in East Hampton in November, much to the delight of reades. It is located at 66 Newtown Lane, in the space that was the longtime home to the restaurant Babette’s, which closed in October 2021. The commercial building, one of the largest in East Hampton Village at 20,000 square feet, made headlines earlier this year when it sold for $28 million, setting a record for the largest sale within any village business district on the East End. Mangia!

17) The Hamptons Real Estate Market Forecast for 2022

In early 2022, columnist Adrianna Nava forecasted what was to come on the Hamptons real estate market in 2022. Revisit her column to see how it holds up with what happened this year.

18) Canoe Place Inn Property: Luxury Townhomes, Partnerships

In March, we reported that the Canoe Place Inn in Hampton Bays, the oldest inn established in the country, which has been undergoing an impressive redevelopment, will now also include a collection of private townhomes on the eastern side of the Shinnecock Canal. See what else is in store.

19) Breadzilla’s Building in Contract; Beloved Sandwiches Will Live on Under New Highway Ownership

Breadzilla, a popular sandwich shop and bakery in Wainscott for nearly 25 years, closed for the winter in late December, but it stayed closed when the building sold in February. A month earlier, it was announced that Highway Group, a team that owns the nearby Highway Restaurant & Bar on the outskirts of Wainscott and Main Street Tavern in Amagansett, was under contract to purchase the building at 84 Wainscott-Northwest Road. Breadzilla owners, Brad Thompson and Nancy Hollister, had the property on-and-off the market for the last few years. Lee Minetree of Saunders & Associates brokered the deal.

20) Southampton’s Red Bar Building Trades for $3.4 Million

The former Red Bar Brasserie building sold to EHP Hospitality Group in February. The restaurant is undergoing renovation and will open in 2023 as Enchanté, a modern French-inspired bistro.

21) Beechwood Launches New Westhampton Beach Projects

On the heels of selling out the condo development at The Latch in Southampton, The Beechwood Organization began construction in March on new single-family homes in Westhampton Beach — Country Pointe Estates is a 22-home residential community on Depot Road, while Oneck Landing is a four-parcel Moriches Bay enclave on Fiske Avenue.

22) SERHANT. House Hamptons Officially Opens in Water Mill

Ryan Serhant’s brokerage, SERHANT., officially opened an office in the Hamptons in July. The star of Bravo’s Million Dollar Listing New York was on hand to welcome guests to the new space at 103 Hayground Road in Water Mill with summer lawn games, food and drink at a party in July. “The Hamptons is one of the most incredible luxury real estate markets in the world,” says Serhant, who is the CEO, as well as the founder. “I have always had an active presence here, across all price points, and I’m excited to be bringing our firm to the Hamptons to better serve our local agents and clients.”