By ARIELLA MONTI
After the four-hour meeting on March 13 at the Rockville Centre Public Library, both village officials and residents made a public stand against the application by AvalonBay Communities, Inc. for a possible reduction in property taxes, the mortgage recording tax and sales taxes.
The Rockville Centre Board of Trustees unanimously approved a resolution at its March 16 board meeting that affirms its position against the application. The reasoning behind the resolution stems from the board's belief that the project, which is a luxury apartment complex with 349 units, is non-industrial in nature and will only create six permanent jobs.
The resolution goes on to say that if the application were approved by the IDA, the tax abatements "Would place an unjust burden on all other taxpayers."
Since the resolution was adopted the IDA has taken AvalonBay off the agenda for its meeting on March 25 and according to Mayor Mary Bossart, Parola said that is due to an error in the public notice announcing the March 13 hearing. Bossart also said that Parola told her that the IDA was "looking at the application afresh."
The village argued at the hearing that the IDA does not have the consent of the village to move forward with the application and Parola countered that consent is not needed. However, the supplemental public notice said, "The Agency contemplates that it will provide financial assistance to the Company in the form of exemptions from mortgage recording taxes in connection with the financing or any subsequent refinancing of the Facility, exemptions from sales and use taxes and with the consent of the Incorporated Village of Rockville Centre."
Bossart said there will be a new notice printed for a new hearing however, she requested that the testimony from the March 13 meeting be provided to the IDA board. She also requested that at the next public hearing, members of the IDA be present to hear testimony personally.
Asked what she hoped comes from the IDA taking a new look at AvalonBay's application, Bossart said, "That the Village of Rockville Centre receives its full amount of taxes," she said. "Whatever those taxes may be. I'm concerned about the pieces that directly impact the Village of Rockville Centre."
The school district came under fire at and after the meeting, following Superintendent Dr. William Johnson's testimony in support for a Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT) program. According to the school district, a PILOT would benefit all school taxpayers rather than just those who are part of that particular taxing classification, which would be Class 2, multi-unit housing. The revenue from a PILOT would be applied as revenue to keep the tax levy lower than it would if the complex were to be traditionally taxed.
"We'd like it to be the fair amount," said Robert Bartels, the district's assistant superintendent of business. "But whatever it is, we just want it to be a PILOT."
Many in the village seem to be united in the stance against the application and the complex as a whole. Residents are making their voices heard at meetings and through petitions and letters sent to Parola, the Town of Hempstead and Nassau County.
"It's a sign of the times," said Doug Diana, who was the executive director at the Town of Hempstead IDA seven years ago. "Right now more people are in tune, as tax payers [they're saying] what's happening with my money and where's my money going?"
Diana said that during the two years he was executive director of the IDA, "I always made it a point to listen to the villagers because the villagers knew best as to what's good for their particular area."
He went on to say that it is important for the entire project to be looked at as a whole and how it would affect the village in the near and distant future. "You have to listen to them and you have to see if you can come to a meeting of the minds," said Diana.
One of the things the IDA will look at is the economic impact the project will have on the Village of Rockville Centre, and representatives from both the IDA and AvalonBay said the apartment complex will bring growth to the village's downtown.
City of Glen Cove Mayor Ralph Suozzi said that while he was not in office when two AvalonBay apartment complexes were built in Glen Cove, the city's downtown has benefited from the projects. "They use the restaurants, the dry cleaners, the florists," he said, adding that the once-blighted and empty areas in the middle of the commercial district are generating more revenue now, even with a PILOT, than they were under their previous owners.
While another public meeting will be held by the IDA, a date has not yet been set. A copy of the transcript from the March 13 meeting can be found online at tohida.org/meeting-information.
Comments about this story? AMonti@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 282.
