Gov. Kathy Hochul has proposed a housing plan, which, if adopted, will have drastic consequences for our county and communities.
The Hochul plan seeks to create 800,000 new housing units across the state in the next 10 years, with a special focus on Long Island. For Long Island, the target is for 38,218 new units from 2023-2025.
Gov. Hochul’s proposal would require local municipalities to rezone properties within one half mile of a transit station. The new zoning must allow a minimum of 50 units per acre. The half-mile radius would be measured from the station itself or station parking lots.
The proposal would prohibit restrictions on height as well as reasonable requirements relating to property line setbacks, lot coverage and minimum parking spaces.
The state would also establish percentage increases for housing for each town that local leaders unanimously say are unrealistic in the three-year time period.
If a town fails to meet its target, the state will impose a process whereby developers could appeal the denial of a local municipality to a “state housing approval board,” which could overrule the local determination.
In other words, decisions with respect to housing proposals would no longer be made by local elected officials but would be made by bureaucrats appointed by the state.
If enacted, these proposals would eliminate zoning protections, damage our suburban quality of life and erode the bedrock principle of local control that is at the heart of our democracy.
For generations, residents have left the city and come to the suburbs for the quality of life, open space, decreased housing density, good schools and safe streets. The quality of life in our communities has remained consistent for decades, primarily because residents demanded policies that protected against overdevelopment.
Long Island relies upon a fragile sole source aquifer for our drinking water. Increasing housing density will endanger that water supply, overcrowd our schools and increase strains on our critical infrastructure from sewage treatment to the supply of gas and electric to fire and police services. There will be more cars on the road and more congestion.
In fact, Long Island has been gradually transforming with more transit-oriented development in communities like Mineola, Patchogue, Farmingdale and others.
Rather than accept this gradual progress, the state will force a radical transformation. The “one size fits all” approach ignores the fact that each community is different and what makes sense in one community makes no sense in another.
I have joined with other elected officials throughout our region to oppose this ill-conceived plan and will fight against it every step of the way.
Richard J. Nicolello is the presiding officer of the Nassau County Legislature
