WHAT’S ALL THE FUSS

TOP CONCERNSPOINT BY POINT

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WE WANT YOU TO KNOW!

CODE COMPLIANCEWithout most of our residents being informed or notified (other than a small ad in the legal section of the Farmingdale Observer), the Mayor and Board changed our codes to allow a multiple family residence once again on Route 109 WITH BONUS DENSITY!

Bonus density was a gift to developers who built in our downtown to revitalize our Main Street. It was never intended to be used to enrich developers on Route 109. Our Master Plan clearly stated 109 be left to automobile related uses. The Board claims we are now “spot zoning” the area on 109 and creating a “Work Force Housing Zone”. What they aren’t telling you is that they created this mess by allowing Multi Family apartments on 109. This Zone is being created without the benefit of any consultation with land use experts or our residents. The Mayor opened the pandora’s box. This will only lead to more “spot zoning” which was previously highly criticized by the current elected officials. Why have they reversed their previous judgement? The Master Plan clearly states, “the residential areas leading to the Village’s downtown must be preserved…”

Detail taken from the Master Plan.

MY VISION FOR

FARMINGDALE’S FUTUREWhat I do know is this: roads need to be repaved, new equipment is needed yearly, and additional parking needs to be developed by the railroad and downtown. We can’t expect to keep going back to the residents looking for more revenue. It is imperative that we ask developers who profit from our Village today to pay their fair share. We want a theater in our community. We must develop a plan where we can set this as a primary goal and work towards attaining it. The development of a theater was included within the Master Plan and it remains the missing link towards our total revitalization. We need more greenspace and as land becomes more and more scarce, we can’t pass up opportunities to ask developers to step up and provide us that greenspace in exchange for bonus densities. If the board had followed the Master Plan, Main Street could have had a beautiful pocket park.

Don’t buy into this notion that only the current Mayor can secure grant money, or the wheels will somehow fall off if he isn’t in office. I have plenty of friends on both sides of the political aisle. I will use all my talent and abilities to bring home the bacon to our special village. All I need from you is your vote to stop the giveaways and shed light on the issues that matter to all of us.

All residents have the right to know about the business that is conducted in the Village. The Board of Trustee meetings are not well attended. To quote the Mayor: “Only complainers come to the meetings”. Unless you agree with the Mayor, you are not treated with respect.

LEADERSHIP

TRANSPARENCY

Mayor Starkie conducting a meeting during his term, 2008-2012.

Enjoying Main St. after receiving a $50,000 grant from then County

Executive Tom Suozzi.

The opinions from many who attend the monthly meetings are that residents’ questions are not answered and they are given little respect. It’s time for a change toward proven leadership. My administration laid the foundation of the vision expressed by the community, on how the Village should progress towards the future.

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YOUR VOTE FOR ME AS MAYOR DOES NOT AFFECT YOUR VOTE FOR THE TRUSTEES

Y O U R V I L L A G E . Y O U R M O N E Y . Y O U R C H O I C E .

10 YEAR REVENUE THE VILLAGE LOST DUE TO LACK OF PROFORMAS

REQUIRED BY CODE

It’s wonderful that the Mayor secured millions of dollars in grants. Our administration did the same, and the initial grants provided the money to engage professionals to help us write the Master Plan. These grants are our tax money being returned to us.

My feeling is that this money should have been matched by the developers who have made multi-millions in our Village. If they paid their fair share maybe we could have

offered our residents a tax cut?

LOST REVENUE

VOTE ROW A WEDNESDAY, MARCH 18 TH

VOTE ROW

A

Development Landlord Rent RecievedFrom Additional Units Granted

Village/Resident Received

231-245 Main Street - The Lofts $2,832,000 $90,000 - Paid out Over 10 Years

285 Eastern Pkwy - The Lofts $3,612,000 $90,000 - Paid out Over 10 Years

168-190 Fulton Street - Robinelle Gardens $6,528,000 $200,000 - Paid out Over 10 Years

824-832 Fulton Street $7,200,000 $59,063 - Paid out Over 10 Years

100 Secatogue Ave. - The Cornerstone $4,656,000 $110,000 - Paid out Over 10 Years

120 Secatogue Ave. $4,764,000 $220,860 - Paid out Over 10 Years

120 Secatogue Ave. (Larger Building) $14,088,000 $500,000 - Paid out Over 10 Years

155 Main Street $1,656,000 $100,000 - Paid out Over 10 Years

It is important to understand that as your former Mayor, in 2008, I had the vision and leadership to engage our Village residents as we began the development of the 2035 Farmingdale Village Master Plan. We applied for and received grants, conducted research and met with the experts and residents to review the best practices as to what has worked in other municipalities. After three years of planning, we developed a solid document and a new path forward for our Village. That vision was long-term not short sighted and meant to establish a well-built

foundation on which the Village’s future could be laid. Why did the Mayor commission a recent study that said we could build 800 more apartments on Route 109?

In October 2019, the board voted to create a new Zone along Route 109, entitled “Work Force Housing”. Every resident in attendance at the hearing was not in favor of this Zone without further study. Residents questions and concerns were ignored. They did not care what the residents thought. The hearing was a farce!

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LET’S GROW OUR VILLAGE WISELY

Hearthstone - 24 town houses crammed onto 3/4 of an acre.

OVER DEVELOPMENT

Robinelle Gardens - Be prepared for more developments coming on 109.

Our original goals were to revitalize Main Street. We had 26 empty stores on Main Street when I became mayor. We were incredibly successful, Main Street is booming! Why are we still building? Especially on 109 which is contrary to our Master Plan?

Apartment buildings do not reduce the tax burden on residential (your) properties. Any tax revenue they generate is applied to the commercial end.

My intentions are purely focused on following the Village Master Plan as adopted by the community under my administration.

STAY INFORMED!

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WATER

PARKING

The quality of our water resources has always been critical to us because of our proximity to the Bethpage/Grumman plume, the Oyster Bay landfill, the Claremont Plant, the Fireman’s Training Center and other known plumes, north of the Village, that are making their way to our wells.

There are now numerous test wells being installed in our Village. Where is the plume and what is up with our water? NOTHING has been shared with our residents. What is the big secret?

Throughout our Master Plan, it is brought to our attention that water resources are the “Weak Link” as we redevelop our Village. If one well goes down in the summer months, it states we could be in a water emergency.

Are you aware that the new water tower the Village put out to bid came in at $5 million dollars? That is a lot of money for our relatively small, 1 square mile wide, village and its’ residents to come up with.

Instead of a newsletter about parades and fun activities, although enjoyable, when will we use the newsletter to tell the residents what they need to know about our water and our future?

As we all know, parking in the Village has become a challenge. The current administration has made efforts to provide parking BUT the issue that needs to be addressed is the “Relief” all businesses request and are typically granted when they open shop on Main Street. Our existing code grants the Board the right to waive up to 90% of the required parking, which is the current practice, and collect a fee from the applicant for their shortage. The Board is under no obligation or required to grant such relief.

I agree Main Street looks great but what you don’t see is what we need to be concerned about! There are several pending applications for catering facilities that are proposing 100’s of additional seats. If the lots are packed now, how can these facilities receive approval? The Board needs to step up and consider bold decisions to address this issue. Several existing restaurants have complained that business is down as people can’t find parking.

How much parking has been lost due to granting relief and waiving the requirements of the current code? Would you believe over 800 spots!!