By PAUL SHAPIRO
As a result, these smaller communities have experienced little to no growth. But that may start to change.
While many young couples may prefer living in larger towns, others want to be part of a community where everyone knows them and their children. And they want a shul that is filled with lifelong friendships. The leaders and members of Young Israel of Oceanside, a temple at the corner of Oceanside Road and Waukena Avenue, are hoping theirs can become such a place by offering young couples the chance to be more than just a number.
Young Israel¹s Rabbi Jonathan Muskat and a team led by David Welner formed a growth initiative committee last fall, devising a plan to attract young families by letting them know about everything Oceanside has to offer, and to help them buy homes. In less than a year, their ambitious plan has become a reality.
³The concept is that we basically believe that there are many young couples out there who want to go to a community where everybody knows them,² Muskat said. ³They want to go to a community where they can contribute as well. We were trying to attract a group of leaders for the next generation of Oceanside. Basically, we were looking for people who were interested in making a difference ... This has resonated with a lot of young couples who now want to help shape the future of our community.²
There are currently seven couples in various stages of buying homes in Oceanside. A dozen other families are actively looking in the area.
The incentive program offers both financial and service assistance for new home buyers. Interest-free $20,000 and $30,000 loans are available to qualifying couples, to be used for down payments. The money does not have to be repaid until buyers sell their homes, whether 10 years from now or 50.
Young Israel has assembled a team of professionals to assist young home buyers at every stage of the process. An attorney for contract and closing is provided at no charge, consultants offer guidance in everything from negotiating price to undertaking renovations, and contractors have agreed to special pricing for home improvements. The temple even has its own Realtor, Robert Manel of Hal Knopf Realty on Long Beach Road, who was chosen for his experience in Oceanside¹s market and his understanding of the needs of young Orthodox home buyers.
³To date, of the couples that have made their decision to move to Oceanside, nearly half are not taking advantage of the financial assistance we offer,² Welner said. ³Many said that the program is what got them to look at Oceanside, but once they saw how unique Oceanside was, with or without the assistance, this would be the only place they would want to raise their children.²
Young Israel even sold a house it owned to make more funds available to help young couples buy homes. ³That alone really speaks volumes of what these people are all about,² said Jake Weintraub, who is set to move to Oceanside from Woodmere with his wife and 3-year-old daughter in mid-July.
Neither Muskat nor Welner believes it is the financial incentives that have drawn people to Oceanside. ³We knew that in order to pique the interests of young couples, we would have to go the extra mile and create a program that would help them purchase a home here,² Welner said. ³However, we also knew that once they experienced a Shabbos in Oceanside, they would be hooked.²
The Weintraubs were one such family. ³At first we were a bit skeptical, but after spending a couple of Shabbosim in Oceanside, we knew that this is where we wanted to raise our children,² Jake Weintraub said. ³We could not believe our good fortune in finding such a warm, non-competitive, chessed-filled community with real Torah values and where everyone knows each other.²
Joey Levy and his wife, Susie, who are eager to move into their new home in Oceanside, agreed. ³After spending just one Shabbos in Oceanside with other young couples, my wife and I knew this was the kind of community we were looking for,² Levy said. ³The entire shul, starting with Rabbi Muskat, enveloped us with warmth and hospitality that we never experienced in other neighborhoods. We found many affordable houses to choose from, and the personalized assistance that the shul offers new home buyers was just the icing on the cake.²
The program¹s goal is not necessarily to make Oceanside the next 1,000-family community. The temple¹s initial goal is to attract 200 to 300 families over the next few years, while working hard to maintain the warmth and character of the community, Muskat said. ³What we are looking for are like-minded young families who want to share our values and rich history and become the framework, and new young leaders that will continue that tradition of excellence in our community and carry this wonderful community into the next 50 years,² he said.
A major draw is that the religious infrastructure is already in place. ³There is no question that our central location and outstanding infrastructure is a great benefit,² Muskat said. ³We are located minutes from all the Yeshivot in the South Shore. We have one of the finest shopping areas on the South Shore, and our commute by train and car is second to none.²
Within walking distance of Young Israel are many homes that sell for as little as $400,000. One young couple who took notice of this was Joseph and Donna Simantov, who will move to Oceanside from Brooklyn this summer. ³One of the main factors that drew us in was that Oceanside had affordable homes and a nice selection of homes in different price ranges,² Donna Simantov said. ³...That was a big factor, and also the fact that Oceanside is right near the Five Towns. You have access to all the shopping and that community as well.²
She also noted that being in Oceanside left her with ³a lot of options for yeshivas, from very religious to more modern² for her two young children.
Weintraub said that there is no comparison between Oceanside and the Five Towns. ³You can¹t touch anything in Woodmere ‹ anything in decent condition ‹ for under $600,000,² he said. ³In Oceanside you can get a nice starter home for $450,000. That¹s a huge attraction.²
Muscat and Welner hope their initiative can create an atmosphere of cooperation between the existing members of the community and families moving in over the next few months that can stand as a model for community development. ³Finding a community like this in New York is definitely something I want to be a part of,² Weintraub said. ³I am thrilled to be part of this revitalization. Once people spend time in Oceanside and once visitors and guests get a feeling for what it¹s like, I have no doubt that it¹s going to be the wave of the future.²
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