Dans Hamptons

On the North Fork and on Long Island there is a shortage of new affordable housing. With the high prices of building supplies, land, and labor these days it seems that the trend for affordable housing is going to always be a tough road. Recently, land once owned by the Village of Greenport, located at the southwest corner of Front and Third Streets, has been acquired by Greenport Gateway Partners LLC so they can develop what is the home to the carousel and other community events through the years. Orient resident Rona Smith is attempting to steer her vision of a complex that includes retail space, along with about twelve affordable two-bedroom apartments into fruition. Her plan is to have retail space on the ground floor and the apartments on the second and third floors.

Not everyone is thrilled with her dreams, and a hearing is scheduled on April 25 at 5 p.m. at the Third Street Firehouse in Greenport. In her favor, Ms. Smith is proposing a building to be built to United States Green Building Council environmental certification standards. She is planning on having 7,612 sq ft of commercial rental space on the ground floor. Some are concerned what impact this will have on the immediate area. However, many believe that new affordable housing is also needed in Greenport. Pledging to work with the Community Development Corporation of Long Island, Greenport Housing Authority and The North Fork Housing Alliance Rona Smith hopes to find eligible purchasers to live in the area year round and bring a new vitality to the area and into the future.

The reality that the next-door theater is closed most of, if not all of the winter, leads Ms. Smith to reportedly want something to fill in the gap of creating positive energy. It was this reason that Ms. Smith chose to make the two bedroom units privately owned and not rented. She did not wish to have only seasonal situations renting the apartments. She also believes that ownership will properly maintain the building and property over a longer period of time moving forward.

However the fact of the proximity of the North Ferry and other entities and the effect this ambitious project may have on established business in the area leaves the debate to be frank and open. However the village and the Ms. Smith’s people seem to be talking and working on making this project a positive event for all the effected people in the Village of Greenport. If you have an opinion one way or another or if you are interested in the details of the process it might be wise to attend the meeting on Wednesday April 25, 2007 to be held at the Third Street Firehouse. The voice of the people is always important to be heard and likewise is always advisable to know the facts and why decisions are made. A meeting such as this one is what makes a village responsive and attentive to the need and wants of the immediate general public.