Nassau Hub Major Investment Study

Major Investment Study

Nassau County has released a final report on the federally funded Major Investment Study (MIS) for the Nassau Hub that evaluates future development and mass transit options for the heart of central Nassau County.

We are awaiting an announcement of the beginning of the Draft Environmental Impact Study (DEIS) process.

Legislative Meetings on Coliseum Redevelopment

The Nassau Legislature's Planning, Development and the Environment Committee will hold three meetings on the redevelopment of the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum and surrounding site by the Lighthouse Development Group. These meetings are not directly related to the Hub MIS or EIS, but the Coliseum site is central to the Hub, and development there is a driving force for the need for new transportation solutions for central Nassau.

Meeting dates:
Thursday, June 8, 2006, 7:00 p.m.
Tuesday, June 13, 2006, 7:00 p.m.
Friday, June 16, 2006, 10:00 a.m.

The meetings will be held in the Legislative Chamber, 1 West St., 5th floor, Mineola.

Update

BRT

On March 24, 2005 Nassau County held its last Hub Stakeholders Meeting. In April, a public meeting was held. The presentation featured forecasts on ridership demand and costs for the three modes of transit being considered in the study: Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), Light Rail Transit (LRT), and Automated Guideway Transit (AGT). A key goal for the MIS is to choose a "Locally Preferred Alternative," that is, a technology - or more than one technology - that will be evaluated further as the planning process proceeds. A draft white paper discussing the various transportation alternatives has been posted on the Nassau County Office of Economic Development web page. (http://development.nassaucountyny.gov/newscontent/nassauhub.html)

AGT	LRT

The County's team made a recommendation that the MIS conclude with the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), and Light Rail (LRT), being the two Locally Preferred Alternatives decided upon by the Study. The recommendation to eliminate AGT from further study was based upon two assumptions. First, the cost of AGT systems were estimated to be dramatically higher than the other two technologies. (See the grid.)

The second assumption that led the study team to recommend elimination of AGT is that any system that utilizes elevated guideways would not look appropriate in a suburban setting.

Concerns were raised by steering committee members about the models used to forecast demand and the lack of information to back up the cost estimates. Although some agreed that the AGT systems should be removed from further study, others did not agree and instead suggested all three technologies should go forward so that the County has the widest range of options to consider. Still some Steering Committee members argued that the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) should be eliminated and instead have the LRT and AGT be the two systems that go forward. At the final public meeting on April 5th, the County announced that, as a result of the urging of stakeholders, all three modes of transit would be evaluated in the next phase (the Draft Environmental Impact Statement) before being narrowed down to two.

What Do You Think?

Click here for the interactive forum discussion on the Hub MIS.

Next Steps

The next step is for the County to complete its final report on the MIS, this report is expected before the end of 2005. The DEIS phase of the project is expected to get underway in 2006. A member of the FTA (Federal Transportation Administration – which provides federal funding for the Study) explained that the DEIS process will begin with a "Scoping" process where members of the community will be able to raise all the issues and concerns that will need to be evaluated as the process goes forward. At some time in the fall, the FTA is willing to provide a workshop on the way that models and forecasts are used in these kinds of studies for members of the general public so that everyone can better understand the process.

For the next steps in the Nassau Hub planning process, Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy, Congressman Peter King, and Senators Hillary Clinton and Charles Schumer have secured $7 million in federal funding for an Environmental Impact Study (EIS), and additional funds for the supplemental outreach.

Nassau Hub Citizens Advisory Committee

The Nassau Hub Citizens Advisory Committee has worked since 1998 to insure that the Nassau Hub is developing using "Smart-Growth" principles to address the County's transportation and affordable housing needs. Previously, this committee has developed specific recommendations, including a map of proposed transportation routes for the MIS and for Hempstead Town.

The County got the MIS off to a good start by agreeing to the main concerns of the Nassau Hub Citizens Advisory Committee that 1) the County agreed to involve the public in the earliest stages of the project; 2) that the study area be expanded from the original three mile square area to a larger traffic congestion problem confronting most of central Nassau and look at connecting the main train line with the southern train line; and 3) that the County fully evaluate all of the many transit technologies now available rather than immediately settling upon Light Rail as happened with the Study in 1998.

The Neighborhood Network would like to thank the Long Island Community Foundation and the Long Island Unitarian Universalist Fund for their generous support of the Nassau Hub Citizens Advisory Committee.

Related Hub Proposals

Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum Redevelopment Plans: The Coliseum is at the heart of the Nassau Hub, and plans for its renovation and redevelopment of the 77 acres of County owned land it occupies are a major impetus for the Hub Study. The County issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the site, with goals that included renovating the Coliseum as a "state of the art facility"; redevelopment consistent with the County's Master Plan for the area; keeping the Islanders, or attracting a comparable sports franchise; incorporating mass transit; and ensuring at least 15% of all housing develped at the site be "next generation" or "workforce" housing (affordable for a family earning $90,000/year or less). Proposals for the site have been received from four development teams. Each includes substantial office and residential development.

Listening to County Executive Tom Suozzi unveil his "New Suburbia" vision for the Hub, including a new Nassau Centre, are Neighborhood Network Executive Director Neal Lewis and Nassau County Deputy County Executive Patrick Duggan with the Nassau Coliseum in the background.

On January 25, Executive Thomas Suozzi unveiled his "New Suburbia" vision (including a new "Nassau Centre") for the Nassau Hub. While there are many specific details that will require careful review, the Neighborhood Network supports the broad vision County Executive Suozzi has for well planned, smart-growth development that is combined with efforts to address traffic congestion in Nassau. Click here to download a pdf file outlining this plan.

Suburban Core Opportunity, Restoration, & Enhancement (SCORE): On February 7, 2005 at the Long Island Housing Partnership's "Suburban Evolution" Conference, Senator Hilary Clinton, Congressman Peter King, and Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy gathered together political leaders, community activists, and urban planners for a dialogue promoting Smart-Growth on Long Island. Issues discussed included Affordable Housing, Open Space Preservation, and the development of a new transit system for Nassau County. Furthermore, Senator Clinton announced that she is sponsoring SCORE legislation into the Senate, and that Representatives McCarthy and King are introducing SCORE legislation in the House, that will provide $250 million in federal funds for economically struggling towns and villages in older suburbs. Grants of $250,000 will be handed out to local governments that incorporate plans to revitalize their downtowns through mixed-use development, affordable housing, transit-oriented development, brownfields remediation, and the integration of parks and open space.

College Town: As part of County Executive Suozzi's "Vision for a New Suburbia" is the creation of College Town in Hempstead Village. College Town would provide much needed Affordable Housing in Downtown Hempstead for college students and recent college graduates. The goal of this proposal is to halt the "Brain Drain" - the exodus of young people leaving Long Island because of the cost of living here, and at the same time economically revitalize Hempstead Village by infusing the area with new life and activity. Moreover, Suozzi proposes to link College Town with Nassau Centre by a network of greenways and a new transportation system. There are many models of College Towns throughout the country that need to be reviewed and the Neighborhood Network encourages community participation in the planning for such development.

The Nassau Business and Community Planning Coalition
The Nassau Council of Chambers of Commerce, the Nassau County Village Officials Association, and Vision Long Island have partnered together with other key environmental and civic leaders to monitor county planning activities related to the Nassau Hub. The new initiative is called the Nassau Business and Community Planning Coalition (NBCPC).

The new coalition held its first forum in September with over 150 Chamber of Commerce presidents, village mayors and other key leaders attending. At the first meeting, the group set the following goals for itself:

1. A detailed work session to review Nassau County plans for the Hub study.
2. Review proposals for the third track of the Long Island Rail Road.
3. Analyze the economic impacts of redevelopment of central Nassau downtowns.

On March 22, 2005, the Coalition held a work session with the participation of the Nassau County Planning Commission staff to discuss the development and transportation proposals under consideration for the Nassau Hub.

The meeting was very well attended and a detailed list of questions and comments was generated. Once the notes from that meeting are available, they shall be posted on this web page.

Nassau MIS Background/Past meetings

On January 25, 2005, Nassau County held a Hub Stakeholders meeting. The County revealed projected ridership estimates and projected costs for the three different types of transit technologies under consideration Bus Rapid Transit (BRT), Light Rail Transit (LRT), and Automated Guideway Transit (AGT). Click here to download a pdf of a presentation from the meeting. The preliminary map developed at previous meetings remained unchanged and was not focused upon for this meeting.

Nassau County Office of Economic Development Hub Page

Nassau County held a Hub Q&A Meeting for Hub stakeholders on June 22, 3 pm to 6 pm.

The New York Times - Long Island Section for Sunday, June 13th contained a front-page article concerning the Hub Study. (If you missed it, it is worth a trip to your local library to read.)

The first public scoping session was held Tuesday, June 10, 2003, 7:00 pm, at the Hofstra University Student Center Theater.

For information about upcoming public hearings, you can call the Nassau County HUB Information line: (516) 571-5951. To be placed on Nassau County's mailing list to receive notice of public hearings download, print, fill out and return this form to:
Nassau County Department of Economic Development
400 County Seat Drive HMIS Dept
Mineola NY 11501
or FAX to: 516-571-1338