Sign up for our Newsletter

After standing vacant and unused for years, the former Mill Creek Inn in Southold will once again host some of the North Fork’s most elegant weddings and stylish shindigs.

Peconic Bay Yacht Club, a 10,000-square-foot building overlooking Peconic Bay, with a marina and manicured grounds, hosted its first wedding last weekend and its owners are ready to start booking more events.

Despite the name, don’t expect a social club or restaurant at the Main Road property, located just west of the Greenport border.

“It’s only a yacht club by name,” said co-owner John Ingrilli. “It’s a catering hall. People can decide how to utilize the property based on their event.”

This arbor will serve as a backdrop for wedding ceremonies.
This arbor will serve as a backdrop for wedding ceremonies.

Should a guest at Peconic Bay Yacht Club forget that the affair they are attending is located on the North Fork, a parking lot covered in crushed clam shells with hydrangea-lined walkways and a large anchor leaning against the dock house will remind them. The cedar-shingle siding and gables give the building the feel of a New England seaside estate and an arbor near the shore offers an ideal spot for a couple to say “I do.”

Inside, the ground floor features a comfortable lounge, a full-service kitchen, handicapped-accessible bathrooms and a ballroom with views of the bay. The second floor offers a bridal suite, another party area ripe for a cocktail hour, additional bathrooms and an outdoor deck with the bay as its backdrop.

The floors are made of wide-plank oak and the walls sport horizontal white planks. The decor is done in light and dark blue hues and the textured wallpaper, curated objects and wall hangings give the space a nautical feel.

“[The owners] wanted an Old-World feel, but something fresh,” said designer Kate Burger, whose father, Eugene Burger of Burger Construction in Cutchogue, is one of the owners. “We wanted it to have an updated feel, but feel like it’s always been here.”

Peconic Bay Yacht Club co-owner John Ingrilli, designer Kate Burger and co-owner Eugene Burger inside the building's ballroom.
Peconic Bay Yacht Club co-owner John Ingrilli, designer Kate Burger and co-owner Eugene Burger inside the building’s ballroom.

Outside the building an 80-foot handicapped-accessible ramp leads to the 50-slip marina. The eco-friendly bulkheading is buffered by Cape American beach grass and wetland grass, which are fed by the bay at high tide.

“During the day at high tide it looks like a fish tank,” Mr. Ingrilli said. “Because of our affinity for the water we wanted to make it as green and eco-friendly as possible.”

The original inn, which stood in disrepair years after its heyday as a seaside nightspot and wedding hall, was torn down in 2005 and this new building rose in its footprint.

But since 2007, the building — originally constructed by Richard Principi of Principi Properties, who received a stop-work order from Southold Town — has stood vacant and unused.

The bridal suite at Peconic Bay Yacht Club.
The bridal suite at Peconic Bay Yacht Club.

Mill Creek Partners LLC, led by Mr. Burger, purchased the property in 2011 for $2.47 million.

“We drove by here and Eugene was living out here full time. The place was abandoned but it had potential,” said Mr. Ingrilli, a part-time Cutchogue resident. “We decided to look into acquiring it.”

It’s a project four years in the making for the owners, who spent more than half that time navigating the permit process. The partners declined to say how much it cost to complete the project.

“It was a lot of hard work, so it feels great [that it is finished],” Mr. Burger said.

That work culminated when Mr. Ingrilli’s daughter Alyssa became the first bride to celebrate her wedding on the property last Saturday.

The first floor lounge.
The first floor lounge.

The reception was held under a Sperry tent, with Peconic Bay breezes wafting through to cool off the guests, and was catered by Elegant Affairs.

“It was wonderful, it really was,” Mr. Ingrilli said.

The space can accommodate parties of up to a few hundred people, he added. The owners have not yet decided whether they will use an exclusive caterer or allow customers to select a food provider from an approved list. They are also unsure if they will provide seating and tables.

For information, call 631-407-5200 or email [email protected]. A website has not yet been created.

Mr. Ingrilli noted that completion of the project, along with the 2013 opening of the renovated Southold Fish Market across Main Road — has breathed new life into the stretch of land between Peconic Bay and Hashamomuck Pond.

“We thought it would improve the whole location,” he said. “This particular area is coming a lot further in becoming aesthetically pleasing. It gives it a real North Fork feel.”

[email protected]

The view of the marina from the second floor deck.
The view of the marina from the second floor deck.
X
X