The Long Island Index released a report by Regional Plan Association today showing development potential in existing downtown areas on Long Island. The report identified roughly 8,300 acres of unbuilt land in over 150 village downtowns and rail station areas - prime acreage for transit-oriented development. The Rauch Foundation funded the report.

Read the Full Release.
Read the Report. (longislandindex.org)

Read the Newsday article.

In December, the Long Island 2035 Regional Visioning Initiative released a report describing the trade-offs of alternative growth strategies for Nassau and Suffolk counties. Long before most of America, Long Islanders were confronting the challenges of growth in a maturing suburban region. The initiative represents an initial step in bridging numerous municipal, county and community efforts to meet these challenges with an Island-wide effort being undertaken by the Long Island Regional Planning Council (LIRPC) to produce a Long Island 2035 Comprehensive Regional Sustainability Plan.

Regional Plan Association presented the Lynbrook Downtown Revitalization Plan to the Village Board last night. The Plan, which was the result of a consensus process with local business, civic, governmental and institutional leaders, was developed by RPA and will be used as a blueprint by the Village as it invites and considers design proposals for downtown. Read more about how the Village of Lynbrook - with its locally popular downtown retail core centered on an LIRR station - can become even more vibrant through on-the-ground improvements and smart development guidelines that focus on a walkable, pedestrian core.

Read the Revitalization Plan (PDF 4.8MB)

Nassau County is considering voting to slash critical funding to Long Island Bus, which would eliminate a quarter of the county's contribution to the bus system, place service in jeopardy and threaten fare increases to those who can afford it least.

Read RPA's Full Statement

Last night, nearly 90 residents of the Village of Freeport turned out to the Bethel AME Church to lend their voice to the efforts to imagine a new vision for the Village's North Main Street and train station area. The project (below), led by RPA, will result in a community-driven plan to revitalize an aging commercial corridor and struggling station area. Working together in small groups around maps of the study area, residents collaborated to provide insights into their community and their hopes for a "better Freeport." Overall, residents are hoping for a safer, greener, more connected Freeport that offers appealing destinations that they - and visitors from throughout the region - can walk to and enjoy.