Vision Long Island presents the annual Downtown Shopping List Tis the season to be shopping! As Vision's staff stayed home on Black Friday, fearful over the possibility of another Walmart-esque trampling, millions of Americans began their holiday shopping blitz by hitting the mall or the discount big-box store. However, there’s a better alternative to the stressful crowds and traffic nightmares during the holiday season: shop downtown! Local shops need your support, not only for their own business, but for the vitality of the entire downtown area. Buying local products supports business owners and employees, local producers, and more. In addition, many shops offer special deals or free items. Many downtowns are working to enhance the local experience this holiday season. Next to Vision’s office in Northport, for example, the parking meters are covered up in candy-cane striped paper as a holiday shopping incentive. There are twinkle lights all over the Village, and signs from the Huntington Township Business Council’s “It Starts Here: Buy Local” campaign line the independent store windows. Downtowns offer more than just shopping—they offer a full experience, filled with shops, restaurants, cafes, parks, people, and charm. This year’s list comes with support from various Long Island Chambers of Commerce, the Nassau Council of Chambers of Commerce, and the Long Island Business Council. We encourage you to visit these and other shops in your local downtown this December and beyond!
These stores are just a sampling of the wonders that downtowns have to offer. Check out the websites of the various Chambers of Commerce for more places to go in your local downtown!
Nassau Council of Chambers of Commerce, Long Island Business Council, Babylon Village Chamber of Commerce, Bay Shore, Bellmore, Brentwood, Cedahurst, Copiague, East Hampton, Farmingdale, Freeport, Glen Cove, Great Neck, Greenport, Hampton Bays, Hempstead Village, Hicksville, Huntington, Islip, Lawrence, Long Beach, Lynbrook, Manhasset, Massapequa, Merrick, Mineola, Northport, Oyster Bay, Patchogue, Port Jefferson, Port Washington, RIverhead, Rockville Centre, Rocky Point, Sayville, Seaford, Southold, Southampton, Valley Stream, Westbury, Westhampton Beach, Williston Park.
The Huntington Chamber of Commerce recently began a "Buy Local" campaign throughout the Town and it has been a rousing success. Anyone who wanders down Main Street in Huntington or Northport Village, for example, will see a plethora of "Buy Local, Shop Here" signs, allowing shoppers to spend their money where their purchases can make their way back into the community. The campaign was created by Bob Bontempi, Chairman of the Huntington Township Chamber of Commerce, as well as Co-chair of Huntington Township Business Council, and Tom Kehoe, a Northport Village Trustee, Co-chair of Huntington Township Business Council, and Village Commissioner of Commerce . In 2004, Vision Long Island held a press conference in the Village of Farmingdale to kick off what would become the annual Shop Downtown for the Holidays list. The event attracted many local shop owners, chambers of commerce, and stakeholders.
On Tuesday, December 8th, the Nassau Coalition of Chambers of Commerce hosted a press conference in front of the Nassau Legislature in Mineola to announce the new “It Starts Here, Buy Local” campaign for Nassau County. Modeled off the Huntington Township Business Council campaign, the program will buy ad space, put up flyers in local businesses, and push the message to all Nassau County residents to shop early, shop often, and shop local this holiday season and beyond! Speakers at the press conference included NCCC President Chris Murray and Vice President Francesca Carlow, Nassau County Legislators Wayne Wink and Judi Bosworth, City of Glen Cove Deputy Mayor Maureen Basdavanos, Village of Freeport Trustee and LI Hispanic Chamber Past President Jorge Martinez, and Vision Long Island’s Executive Director Eric Alexander. |
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SMART GROWTH NEWS Newsletter Editor: Michelle Dutchen, Director of Communications We strive to provide continued quality publications such as this each week. If you are interested in becoming a newsletter or news blast sponsor, please call the office at 631-261-0242 for rates and opportunities. If you have any news or events that you would like to add to our newsletter, submit them to info@visionlongisland.org for consideration.
For more information about Vision Long Island, visit http://www.visionlongisland.org or contact us at: |
