The Dory in contract for sale: Lawsuit filed against Kiffer

The Dory is on its way to having new owners — Ron Webb and Dan Calabro — who are purchasing the Bridge Street restaurant and bar from Jack Kiffer.

Mr. Kiffer confirmed the paperwork is in the hands of lawyers, adding that he’s not expecting any difficulty. At the same time, Milen Planas has issued copies of legal papers filed last week with the Suffolk County Supreme Court based on an agreement she and Mr. Kiffer signed in June 2009 that listed her as owning 49% of the Dory.

“Jack Kiffer contractually and by court order is prohibited from transferring any ownership in the Dory without agreement from Milen,” said her attorney, Steven Altman. “We do not consent to the sale,” Mr. Altman said.

The papers maintained that a sale couldn’t be made without agreement of both partners, and if a sale were to be consummated, her share would jump to 50% ownership, meaning profits from a sale would be split between the two.

On Saturday, Mr. Kiffer confirmed the sale and said he’s not worried about Ms. Planas’ action to try to stop the sale.

In June, Ms. Planas reached out to the Town Board and Building Department reasserting her 49% ownership and asking for help in efforts to identify code violations and restore the property to its original use, or another commercial use.

“I am committed to collaborating with the Town to address these issues and bring the property up to Town standards,” she said at the time.

While current efforts are underway, they are happening not because of Ms. Planas’ appeal, but because Mr. Webb, a well known builder working primarily in the Hamptons, is undertaking a lot of the construction work at The Dory, Mr. Kiffer said. He has not yet been reached for comment on the situation.

The Town has no role in the issue of the Dory ownership with Mr. Karen saying the construction permits would be issued only if the Town had proof of a majority ownership and that’s an issue no one now disputes.

Mr. Calabro said he is happy to move forward to bring closure with Mr. Kiffer, adding that he didn’t know about Ms. Planas’ latest suit against Mr. Kiffer. But he said if she would reach out to him, he would seek to “get to the bottom of this and if she’s deserving, she’s deserving” and money would be worked out with her.

Ms. Planas said she previously sent Mr. Calabro copies of the information about her own agreement with Mr. Kiffer and the recent filing of a suit against Mr. Kiffer.

Mr. Calabro confirmed work is ongoing to bring the building into compliance with codes to qualify for a certificate of occupancy. The Building Department had issued a permit for structural repairs, including damage to the building from a fire in August 2021 caused by faulty electrical work, according to Senior Building Inspector Reed Karen.

An electric inspector was charged with determining what had to be done. He was the same inspector who had written violations in the wake of the fire.

Mr. Karen said at the time his department’s responsibility is to enforce state building codes.

In early August, Mr. Kiffer confirmed the work, saying it was going to take awhile because there was a lot of work to be done.