I read Hempstead Town Supervisor Jennifer DeSena’s letter entitled “Gov. Hochul is wrong on housing plan” in the March 3 edition of the Manhasset Times. I view her concern as worthy and clearly elucidated. However, on the other hand, it is not linked to a solid solution.
I am a homeowner and have lived in Nassau County since 1989. Consequently, I share, to an extent, her view that the Hochul Plan may serve as an entre to the construction of “…high rises in our backyards.” Aside from that, I have neither seen nor heard of the Hochul Plan’s capacity for addressing issues regarding vehicular traffic density, provision of additional gas, water, sewage, septic systems, electric power as well as impact on schools, let alone retail shopping & quality of life. While I rest somewhat assured that the governor will address these in the immediate future, the sooner an efficient, well-tailored campaign, well-discussed via a solid spirit of bipartisanship, gets underway the better.
Aside from discussions that are both time bound and measurable in terms of results, I caution that affordable residential housing falls short in Nassau and Suffolk Counties. Commercial acreage around sites such as the Sears buildings in Hicksville and Lake Success; empty office buildings along the Oyster Bay branch of the LIRR as well as the Macy’s acreage in Manhasset Valley would be prime candidates for residential expansion and growth.
I also caution against our municipal leaders jumping into their foxholes and sniping at each other ad nauseum. It is bad enough that Nassau is riddled with a parade of municipalities which resemble the 100 midgets popping out of the Volkswagen. Each bears its own agenda, its own priorities. Such a foxhole mentality strikes me as apparent with Supervisor DeSena’s statement that somehow the Hochul Plan will saddle us to the “… will of faceless Albany bureaucrats with no accountability to our communities…”
Ugh. Really. Housing is a statewide issue throughout all 62 counties of New York. The issue will present to New Yorkers and Long Islanders an opportunity for statewide discussion and networking that is unique to New York, a linchpin of the American economy. Solutions can be reached with meaningful discussion and compromise, something that I want to see from our political leaders.
Brian Kilgannon
Carle Place
