If these developers really feel that this is such a good thing then they should pay their share of the taxes or better buy residential property here, in Glen Cove. Not Upper Brookville or Oyster Bay but in Glen Cove and better send your kids to the schools here (I don't) and then I'll gladly listen to what you have to offer. Get some skin in the game that's not financed off of garbage loans that you'll only walk away from when things don't work out. And they won't.

And for those of you who are falling for these mis-facts ... Yes renters pay taxes via their landlords, but if the landlord is not paying taxes (via PILOT or Abatement) then the tenant is living here on your dime and not contributing. Sure they might kick in something through sales or business tax but there's really nothing to buy here and no work?

Brooke has the right idea. Let those people that want to build this monster live in Glen Cove, better yet, let them live in the complex that they want to build. Lets see how many of them get cancer within the first 5 years of living there. But yet they want us to live there, HA!Also let them pay the taxes, opposed to getting a tax break like the present Government has given to a lot f the businesses in Glen Cove to keep them here. Well I say__________! I can't really say what I want to, but many know what should fill the blank.
How can you build on top of a Browns Field, or garbage dump that had failed before and now that you've skimmed off a foot of soil and put new soil down, you think this changes everything! IT changes Nothing!
And the biggest joke is the Ferry. We've had 6 Ferry services in Glen Cove so far and "none" of them have worked. And now they want to bring number 7 into Glen Cove. For what? To fail again! How many times does one have to be hit in the head to find out that it just "doesn't work"!

Does anybody know if Glenn Howard correct about the taxes, or is that a general assumption?

We don't seem to learn from our mistakes, do we?

John,
The only mistake we keep making is putting the same family back in power year after year. It is time for everyone one whether democrat or republican to go to the polls and dump the mayor and his rubber stamp council. If we don't then it is only our fault.

Brooke, your points are spot on, why don't you send them to the local papers and Newsday, etc. for a larger audience!!??

Thanks TC - If you don't mind I may quote you there :)
I'd be happy to throw this up to a larger audience I just don't know where to go? Im relatively new to the area (my wife grew up locally) and a software developer so I don't quite know who's who ... which probably explains why I tend to look at all of this with a degree of logic and neutrality ... I just want my house to be worth more than it is :) If anyone has suggestions I'd be happy to discuss. Ping me directly through Patch and I'd be happy to discuss directly. Given some of the anon-aggressive tones on these boards I'd prefer to not broadcast my contact info publicly but I'd be happy to speak/chat/im with anyone who has actual suggestions.

Brooke, what do you mean by "monument of mediocrity".
The only landlords who pay 0% taxes are the ones that supply the illegal housing in Glen Cove. One of the biggest mouth pieces for Melli is a convicted slum-lord who continuously posts on this web site under a fake name.

Maybe I missed something, but is it confirmed that the Waterfront & Piazza projects getting tax breaks or deferrals?

I am alos a VERY PROUD parent of my children who attend(ed) Glen Cove Public Schools! I also watch the BOE work so hard every year to give our children the best education possible while looking out for the taxpayers of Glen Cove. The FEIS (before the new rental proposal) is placing approx. 240 children in our schools at a cost of around $3.9 million dollars a year. If the developer is given a PILOT for 20 years or so, we are talking over $60 million to educate children before any taxes are due by the developer. That is quite a burden for the taxpayers of GC..this year alone the BOE will have to face the new 2% tax cap while preparing the budget. Good schools are the foundation of good communities - our children deserve the best we can offer them now - not in twenty years!
P.S. Big Red Football Vs. Sewanakah @ GC High School Saturday 1:30...come see our kids.

Brooke,,,,You should know that Cities, Towns and Municipalities should be so lucky to have a person of Glen Howard's stature involved in its planning and growth. Glenn has far more than any "commercial interest" in this City. Regardless of which party was in office, Glenn has served on the Planning and Zoning Boards, and for more years that many have lived here, has been an active member of the Chamber of Commerce. Oh, and did I mention that HE LIVES HERE...So before your "feeling" gets you into more trouble, be sure to check your facts. As for the Tax Abatement programs, they are used all over the country to attract business to a locale and to suggest that developers and builders have no skin in the game is to be ignorant of what it takes to see a project from its very beginnings to its fruition.

Marie,
If Glen Howard is responsible for planning and growth then he should be run out of town. I lived here for close to 30 years and watched as our elected officials destroyed what was once the Gold Coast. Which if things continue will be come the Ghost Coast! Point out one positive that has happened in the last 30 years? Do the schools compete on the same level of surrounding communities? Can we swim on our beaches? Are there stores to shop in? The retail mix is a joke. If the waterfront is such a valuable piece of property why give it away, let the developer pay a premium? If there is no taxes being collected then make it a park for all to enjoy.

Suzanne, does the BOE speak up when the number of children in the system can increase, but the dwellings for these children are outside of the tax rolls? Why aren't they vocal at times like this, when policy can translate into cash for education?

Glenn Howard may be bright and dedicated, but he went ad hominem on Bozzello, referring to his comment as stupid. For somebody who has withstood the verbal abuse of the concerned public, he could show some patience for those of us without the expertise.

The waterfront hasn't been a topic at the BOE for quite some time. I remember a few years in the past when it was brought up, the superintendent (who is now gone) only cited that the district has the capacity to accommodate the extra population. I don't recall if the impact of PILOT on the district was discussed. I do plan on asking the BOE what impact a business with a PILOT has on the budget especially a project of this size.
I do have to say I am not against (smart) developement - I am just concerned that $3.9 million may be a lot to absorb for our schools and it should definetly be looked into.

Marie,
Do you agree that this city has deteriorated in the last 30 years or is it more vibrant? It has been sucked dry by self serving politicians over the years. Is it any surprise that one family of elected officials have had their fingers in the pie! Have you noticed how the retail base has vanished? How the schools are looked down upon by every realtor trying to sell homes in the area. How the beaches can not be used? Give me one reason anyone would want to move to Glen Cove with it's taxes through the roof? Nepotism supreme in city hall and its agency's. They will build the hi-risers and they will become empty like the parking garages. Then the city can fill them like they have with the garages. Just give me one example of something good that is going on in the city?

JJ
How long has Crescent Beach been closed? Can you name a store in GC other then a nail salon? How can you even say the schools are on a par with LCV or North Shore? I think you need to take the rose colored glasses off.

IMHO I feel that the planning board and the current administration do not take into consideration the taxpayer's position and they seem to have forgotten who they work for, the residents of Glen Cove, not the developers. Let's just say the waterfront is built as stated the other day. What happens when the city realizes that the firehouse is in a unsafe location due to the increase in traffic from the waterfront and piazza, who is going to pay for that to be relocated?? How about the fact the waterfront is going to need a safe source of drinking water, we are already down one well due to pollution, so another well needs to be drilled offsite, at whose expense?? How about when it is realized that the roads can not handle the increase in traffic, again who is going to pay for that fix. We have already spent millions on that property and I see no income coming back into Glen Cove or at least breaking even for our expenses to clean up that property. As a property owner being held hostage by my ever increasing tax bill, I am becoming very resentful with all the new developments (and old developments, the Regency should have the PILOT revoked, seriously, the Regency is expanding its property) not paying taxes, getting PILOTS and putting the burden on me and other tax payers. The developers want to build, fine, pay your full share of taxes just like you and me.

Scroll through the photos. Every one was taken in Glen Cove.
http://glencove.patch.com/blog_posts/adapt-to-overcome

Regarding the thread on retail in GC, Big Box stores have taken business from Mom and Pop stores, and now people are using Big Boxes to comparison shop and then buy on-line. Considering that overall trend, Glen Cove is not doing so badly.

It's not only the box stores, it's the cost of doing business here, and it's not only Glen Cove, or one party. Everyone has had a hand in it. Nassau County, New York State, now the Federal Government is reaching for more from business. Glen Cove can't sustain it as well as some other places, we're in an isolated cul de sac, our location is awkward. There are a lot of boarded up businesses in Glen Cove, a lot of the ones that are left are hanging on by a thread. In the years to come, there will be a lot more boarded up businesses because our economy isn't improving and the tax and regulatory burden put on businesses is just way too high, especially for this area. There are very few businesses in Glen Cove doing well, I'd bet most business owners aren't making a salary, and a lot more are using their savings to pay taxes and rent. I don't think we need Nostradamus to tell us we're on a dangerous course. My family has been doing business here for almost a century, this has been the toughest time for us, and that includes the Depression.

Marie, central planning just doesn't work. It's never worked. What they're trying to repair now is the mistakes of the past planners. The way to fix Glen Cove is to make it more business friendly. In order to make it more business friendly, the taxes should be lowered and the regulations should be loosened, or more of us will shrug. When we shrug, the jobs disappear. I've been living in this town for fifty years, and it's the same old soup, just warmed over.

Just the school taxes that we pay on the property our business is on would be enough to bankrupt a lot of people. It's not competition, business has a way to react to competition. It's the tax burden, and the only way to get around that is to move away. Borders are great things, borders give us options.

What "rising young workforce" will waterfront residences bring to Glen Cove? Recent grads are having a hard time getting work and repaying college loans.

There always has to be a plan or you have chaos. I totally agree with your comments on being business friendly and the tax structure. I too have been here for almost 50 years but I have tried to be a voice for a brighter future and not get stuck complaining about its shortcomings. I'd rather try to change them. As for the "rising young workforce", they were in evidence at the meeting, and my children know many of them. There are also longtime homeowners living in Glen Cove who would love to downsize to an apartment overlooking the harbor. They have told me they would do it "in a heartbeat", so please don't tell me there would be no market for what is being planned.

Sadly, my advice to my children is leave Long Island. There is no way for them to making a comfortable living here. I will not be far behind them. That is the reality of the situation now. The taxes; school, property, MTA, county and the cost of living is just out of control. I can not see young people coming to live in Glen Cove, there is nothing here for them, so you build shops, restaurants, bars, that is going to bring them???? Once they decided to buy a house and do the math, say good-bye to those "young" people.

It's not "Chaos" Marie, what we need is "Spontaneous Order". That's what happens when conditions are right. That's what Capitalism is. There are neighborhoods all over NY City that are being revitalized, not because of city planning, but because the conditions were right. It's up to government to provide a health environment for the private sector to prosper, not to create monstrosities and hope they sell. People are leaving New York, it's leading the country is outmigration. That's not because there isn't beautiful apartments overlooking creeks, it's because the business conditions in this state are terrible. They're approaching the problem from the wrong angle. You saw evidence at the meeting Marie, but there is hard date that contradicts your evidence. Long Island is shrinking in population, New York is losing Congressmen because our population is getting smaller, people are moving to Wilmington, North Carolina and Atlanta, Georgia, and Dallas, Texas, places where there is still a chance to achieve. If you build it, they might not come. Look at the Mets beautiful new ballpark, nearly empty every night. A gorgeous place to see a game, but there isn't anything going on underneath the fluff. That's about where Glen Cove is heading, unfortunately. When the first proposed the waterfront, they were saying "Mystic Seaport". If we're lucky, we'll get Bayville. Empty stores and restaurants in front of some water.

Marie, I heard a young woman speak representing the 20's demographic at the meeting, but that does not mean that there are jobs and income available to sustain young workers at those rents. If they can do it, great, but I ain't buyin' it.
The people you refer to who would downsize to live on the harbor sound like empty-nesters or people who have equity to begin with.

Here's a "plan". Go easy on business. Cut the School taxes on Commercial Property, cut the payroll tax, drop the ridiculous Transportation tax businesses pay, cut the business income tax, offer business more by taking less. Stop looting the "job creators", 3/5 of jobs in the US are from small businesses, stop treating them like government's ATM machine. That's the fertilizer this City needs, the County, the State and the Country too.

Great plan and I am with you on that one all the way!. I still think, however, the waterfront and all the beauty the area can offer MUST and can be utilized to enhance, and not detract from, the beauty of this area. It is not wrong to have a vision of what could be as that, too, allows for a phoenix to grow from ashes. What is wrong is to allow and condone continuing decay of that property.

A couple of speakers brought up Port Jefferson. That is as an example of a waterfront that was developed, but to a degree that retains some character. The scope of this project is ostentatious - and there is no point to it but to maximize profit for investors/developers at the cost of Glen Cove and the other residents around the harbor. I overhead a gentleman in Sea Cliff refer to "that ridiculous project in Glen Cove" (maybe he meant the Piazza). That is my anecdote of how Glen Cove is becoming a joke.

I don't mind the cleanup, but most planners, most people in the public sector don't really grasp the private sector. They look at business as a way to fund their projects. Glen Cove is what it is. The only thing that can really help us achieve that dream of becoming a "destinations" is direct train service into Manhattan. The reason Port Washington, Manhasset and Great Neck are busier, the reason their property values are still pretty good is because of that train line. That's really what can help turn us around. Until then, we're just the end of 107. The original "Gold Coast" planners made sure we weren't easy to access, that's the way it's been ever since then. No good highways, no good trains. That's part of the answer.

JJ,
When was the last time you bought shoes in GC? When was the last time you bought socks or underwear in GC? When was the last time you bought pants or a shirt in GC? As far as restaurants, maybe we need more? Well we have how many big box drug chains? Maye we need more? This town house become a dead city for GC? When was the last time you shopped in London Jewelers? Get real and look around your great city. So your children and their friends graduated from GCHS and went to great colleges, that is wonderful. What about the remainder of the student body? Ask any realtor is the schools are a positive selling point.

CC, great news! You can finally get yourself new underwear! At the new retail store opening downtown!