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Light Rain New IDA board collects testimony from taxpayers
PILOT hearing could be reopened, studied
“Look at all these people,” a woman trilled at the Hempstead Industrial Development Agency board last week, gesturing to a crowd of about 700. “They’re all in the same boat.”
A man in the audience quipped, “Yeah, the Titanic.”
That exchange captured the tone of the nearly three-hour meeting on Jan. 19 at the Robert W. Carbonaro Elementary School in Valley Stream, at which the Hempstead IDA collected testimony that would inform its decision whether or not to re-evaluate tax breaks issued to the Green Acres Mall in 2015 that have been blamed for sudden tax hikes in the surrounding area.
Any decision made by the IDA would also affect parts of Elmont, Franklin Square, Lynbrook, Malverne and North Woodmere.
Last week’s meeting was similar to one District 24 hosted in October, but didn’t have any of the logistical bugs. Audio cables connecting microphones to equipment were neatly taped to the gym floor. An adjacent viewing area was set up so that an overflow of attendees could still see and hear what was happening in the gym. Police guided attendees to available seating.
Throughout the evening, a long line of residents approached a single microphone to lambaste the IDA and detail the strain of making ends meet in Nassau County.
Kimberly Femenias, 23, of the Mill Brook neighborhood in Valley Stream, said she would volunteer her time to come up with a solution, touting her master’s in accounting. Listing the various parties involved, several local politicians attempted to address possible solutions in their testimony.
State Assemblyman Brian Curran (R-Lynbrook) urged the IDA to sit down with the various entities to come up with a solution before letting the issue unfurl in court, which could take years.
“At that time, if all the parties can’t sit down and figure out a solution to solve these people’s tax problems, then this board does what it has to do,” Curran said. “But not before you try to save these people the heartache of seven or eight years of [litigation].”
The tax break, issued by the Hempstead IDA in 2015, took effect for the mall in October, reducing its tax payments by about $6.5 million and by a similar amount each year until 2022 as part of a payment in lieu of taxes agreement, or PILOT. The deal hinged on the fact that a majority of the mall’s patrons come from outside Nassau County, qualifying it as a “tourist destination.”
That helped explain why tax bills in school districts 13, 24 and 30 increased, on average, between $322 and $758, drawing residents’ fury. Uncertainty loomed over the clash among those residents and elected and school officials over the next several months because of the apparent numerous causes of the tax increases, including the tax incentives, the schools’ budget estimates, the central high school structure and a countywide trend of shifting the commercial tax burden to residential properties.
Six of seven IDA board members resigned on Nov. 14 after Hempstead Town Supervisor Anthony Santino threatened to remove them from their posts. They resigned, they said in a statement, “because of the efforts of certain public officials to delegitimize and misrepresent the facts” about the Green Acres Mall deal.
Arthur Nastre, John Ferretti Jr., Eric Malette, Steven Raiser, Florestano Girardi and Lynbrook Mayor Bill Hendrick comprise the new IDA board. Girardi is the only previous IDA member to weather the transition, likely because he was not a member at the time of the Green Acres Mall deal. The Hempstead board will vote on appointee Gerilyn Smith at its February meeting.
Teachers union hosts rally ahead of PILOT meeting
About 100 Valley Stream Teachers Association teachers and residents marched the sidewalks with signs on Jan. 19 to rally against the Green Acres Mall PILOT. Nassau County Legislator Carrie Solages (D-Elmont) led the rally in front of the Robert W. Carbonaro School. They marched with signs that read, “Green Acres Pay Your Fair Share,” chanted, “It’s not fair! Pay your share!” and listened to speakers before a public hearing held inside the school later the same night.
Jeanette Wilson, of Valley Stream, who serves on the North High School PTA, made her sentiments clear. “I’m out here marching tonight because it’s unfair,” she said. “It’s a multibillion dollar tax burden being placed on citizens.”
Valley Stream Mayor Ed Fare stood on the back of a pickup truck with a megaphone to address the marchers with Solages.
“I’m glad to see all the teachers out here tonight, as nothing is more important than education,” Fare said. “I live in District 30, and my taxes this year saw a $1,200 increase ... That’s $100 a month. The problem is that we need to find a solution. We need to make sure the IDA reopens this case and looks much closer at this PILOT agreement.”
Patrice Davidson, a Suffolk County resident and a resource room special education teacher at Central High School, said she felt connected to the community after having worked in the district for 30 years.
“This tax thing is abominable,” she said. “I’ve been a teacher in this district for a long time, and wanted to come out to show my support for the residents here.”
