| Ed Lynch Monday, July 30, 2012 |
It seems as if people all over Long Island are looking for new jobs. Each time there is hope of a project which will bring new jobs, people get excited. This is why there has been so much controversy surrounding the building of the Mall at Oyster Bay. This has been the costly project which will turn a now barren field off of Exit 43A, into a high-end shopping mall.
There is small group of individuals which are trying to overturn the Regional Economic Development Council’s decision to downgrade the project’s regional significant status. Doing this will have a devastating impact on the project. This has several people concerned since the project will possibly bring over 2,000 jobs to the area. The project will bring approximately $500 million in sales revenue, over $40 million in sales taxes and $9 million in property taxes to the local economy each year it is in operation.
Gary Lewis, the spokesperson for the mall’s developer, Taubman Company, is fighting to not have the project’s significance downgraded. He said that the mall will have extreme regional significance. He also pointed out that this mall would be the first regional mall in to be built in Nassau County in 40 years. This is a show of how a privately financed project can revitalize a barren area and being property to the area without any tax payer funding.
Recently, there have been billboards asking the developer to listen to the community and not put a mall into the area. The billboards were not paid for by residents of the area. Instead, the billboards have been paid for by the developer’s competitor, Simon Property Group. They would be directly affected if the mall were to be built since they own four large malls on Long Island.
Recently, a pamphlet was sent out to the residents of the area which showed an illustration of the depressed field as is now and an illustration of the proposed mall. The pamphlet says that where they see a field others see jobs, lower taxes and school funding.
It is estimated that the developer has spent $160 million to date on the site. Parts of those funds were used to clean the contamination left in the areas by Cerro Wire.
Union members were present at the first major public hearing for the mall. Many of the other people present at the hearing were residents from the Birchwood neighborhoods. This meeting began at 10am and did not conclude until 4am. The two sides spent this time in a heated debate over whether or not the mall should be built.
People on both sides of this issue will have to wait a bit longer to see what happens in the area. This is because things are currently not moving forward.
Edwardl@longislandyellowpages.com Appears In: Jobs & Careers
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