Smart Growth Awards Update

Press release

2009 Smart Growth Awards

CONTACT:
Eric Alexander
Office: (631) 261-0242
Cell: (631) 804-9128
ea@visionlongisland.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
June 17, 2009

2009 Smart Growth Awards
A Who’s Who of Smart Growth on Long Island
Crest Hollow Country Club, 8325 Jericho Turnpike, Woodbury, NY
Friday, June 19, 2009, 11:30am-2:00pm

Vision Long Island’s 2009 Smart Growth Awards will take place Friday, June 19th from 11:30am-2:00pm at the Crest Hollow Country Club in Woodbury, NY. The Awards celebrate the people, projects, and policies advancing Smart Growth on Long Island. This year, the honorees represent the best of what is underway from thousands of local leaders who make decisions for Long Island’s communities every day. In the face of economic challenges, the honorees have defied expectations by bringing real results to our communities.

Smart Growth favors mixed-use, mixed-income development that is attractive and strategically designed to enhance the greater area. Smart Growth reduces traffic by making alternative transportation a realistic and even pleasant option. It embraces clean energy and sustainability by design.

This year’s eleven winners represent the great progress that has been made toward achieving Smart Growth solutions for Long Island communities. This year, each of the honorees has projects that are either approved, in construction, or built; or has a long record of accomplishment with concrete deliverables. Vision Long Island intentionally chose honorees that did not just have a vision, but have realized these plans in real time.

The six projects honored this year are either approved or built; the two plans have the full support of the local municipality; and the three organizations/individuals have a long record of accomplishment.

These eleven honorees were chosen out of the nearly fifty submissions received this year.

Stakeholder Participation:
Lori Baldassare for the Mount Sinai Heritage Center
Lori Baldassare helped lead the charge to build the Mount Sinai Heritage Center, a successful new community center located at the site of a planned Home Depot. She demonstrated an exceptional use of stakeholder participation in the planning of the community facility and grounds in order to build something truly beneficial for the community.

Revitalizing Communities:
Trammell Crow Residential- Alexan @ West Hempstead
The Alexan @ West Hempstead will be a much-needed rental housing building, located at the site of the Courtesy Hotel—which the community has long considered a drug and crime-ridden blight. Alexan is strategically located adjacent to the West Hempstead LIRR station. It will serve as a central piece of revitalization plans for the area.

Preserving Open Space:
Lisa Ott of the North Shore Land Alliance
Lisa Ott is being honored for her efforts to pass environmental bond resolutions in multiple municipalities in Nassau and Suffolk. She has done exceptional work with open space bonds in Nassau County and the Town of Huntington, helping to develop the bonds and later helping to allocate the funds.

Mix of Uses:
TRITEC for New Village in Patchogue
TRITEC’s redevelopment plan in the heart of downtown Patchogue will include office, retail, mixed-income housing, public space, and a hotel. The 4.87-acre site will help revitalize an area that has been depressed for many years, using Smart Growth principles to enliven the neighborhood.

Encouraging Walkability:
Kingdom Family Holdings for the Marquis at Mineola
The Marquis at Mineola is a multifamily residential project in downtown Mineola. The project incorporates progressive design elements combined with a strategic location in downtown Mineola to encourage walking. The project’s features align with the Village of Mineola’s Master Plan, which emphasizes pedestrian facilities.

Providing a Range of Housing Types:
Nassau-Suffolk Coalition for the Homeless
The Nassau-Suffolk Coalition for the Homeless will be honored for their work in helping Long Island’s homeless find sufficient housing and support services. The group is a strong voice for an underrepresented demographic. Over the past 15 years, they have helped Long Island receive $91 million in federal HUD money for housing and services.

Creating a Sense of Place:
Hon. Steve Flotteron and Hon. Phil Nolan
of the Town of Islip for the Bay Shore Marina
Councilman Steve Flotteron and Supervisor Phil Nolan were strong voices for the reconstruction of the Bay Shore Marina. The revitalization of the 21-acre Marina has transformed a struggling section of the community into a thriving public space. Through the Town official’s leadership, the community helped to create a place that works for everyone.

Compact Design:
The Dennis Organization for Hawthorne Court
Hawthorne Court is a nearly-completed multifamily housing project in Valley Stream. The project provides walkable access to the Valley Stream train station, downtown shops and businesses, and more. Compact building design is an alternative to sprawl development, so that buildings are created with maximum resource efficiency and open space preservation.

Providing Transportation Options:
The Town of Brookhaven & VHB for the Ronkonkoma Hub
The Ronkonkoma Hub is a redevelopment plan for the land around the Ronkonkoma LIRR station. The project will change zoning to allow for transit-oriented development and a variety of transportation options, including shuttle buses, train, taxis, walking, biking, and more.

Green Building & Energy Efficiency:
The Village of Amityville for Village Hall
The Village of Amityville is receiving an award for their brand new Village Hall building, which was built with green standards. The building reduces energy consumption, minimizes environmental impact, and improves the long term health of Village employees. Amityville has shown a strong commitment to reducing the Village’s energy costs, saving taxpayer money, and improving the environment.

Providing Certainty:
Mayor Ralph Suozzi for the Glen Cove Master Plan
Mayor Ralph Suozzi has made development decisions fair and predictable for the City of Glen Cove through its recently-adopted Master Plan. This plan successfully involves the community and lays the groundwork for multiple redevelopment projects from the waterfront to the downtown.

The event will be presided over by Master of Ceremonies Adrienne Esposito, Executive Director for the Citizens Campaign for the Environment. The group is a leader in the region for research, lobbying and public education on diverse environmental campaigns. Such campaigns include groundwater protection, land use planning, coastal water protection, estuary and ocean protection, toxic waste remediation, pesticides reduction, renewable energy campaigns, clean air and public health issues.

Over 600 Long Island civic, development, and government leaders are expected at the Awards.

The Smart Growth Awards is one of two primary Smart Growth events held on Long Island each year. In November, these leaders will reconvene for the annual Smart Growth Summit, a full day of work sessions and talks designed to analyze Smart Growth issues on Long Island.

The 2009 Smart Growth Awards will take place on Friday, June 19th from 11:30am-2:00pm at the Crest Hollow Country Club. For more information, you can also contact our office at (631) 261-0242 or email info@visionlongisland.org. We look forward to seeing you there!

To read about past winners or to find out more about the Awards, visit our website here

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