By GREGORY ZELLER //
The first state-owned property targeted for potential developer-friendly housing projects – as laid out in Albany’s ambitious new housing plan – is on Long Island.
Governor Kathy Hochul has issued a Request for Proposals to purchase and redevelop an approximately 13-acre site on Conklin Street in East Farmingdale. The site, owned by the New York State Department of Transportation as part of Republic Airport, once housed an aerospace-manufacturing facility that’s been vacant since the 1990s.
It currently serves “no direct function” for the airport and is scheduled for demolition, according to the governor’s office – but it does offer a “prime opportunity” to transform a “blighted and underutilized lot” into a mixed-use residential development located roughly one mile from both the Pinelawn and Farmingdale Long Island Rail Road stations.
As per the landmark housing agreement included in the recently enacted FY2025 state budget, any residential development on the site must include affordable housing. The Empire State Development Corp., Albany’s main economic-development engine, anticipates 20 percent of the on-site housing will be affordable housing units restricted to households earning 80 percent of the Area Median Income.
Kathy Hochul: Developing story.
Proposed developments must also provide open-space amenities and sufficient parking, “enhance pedestrian connectivity to surrounding commercial centers” and emphasize sustainability and energy-efficiency in line with the New York Climate Act, the governor’s office noted.
In return, developers will be eligible for tax-incentive packages reserved for the construction of mixed-income and affordable housing developments – while any on-site remediation required by as-yet-undiscovered underground contamination will be covered by funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
State and regional lawmakers have lined up behind the plan, including New York State Homes and Community Renewal Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas, who said the developer-friendly wheeling-dealing is exactly the sort of creativity needed to tackle the statewide housing shortage.
“Relieving the housing crisis facing New Yorkers requires innovative solutions that unlock our state’s potential for growth,” Visnauskas noted. “By developing the Conklin Avenue site, we will utilize resources left underused for over a quarter-century to create transit-oriented housing … where the need is amongst the most critical in the state.”
Suffolk County Executive Edward Romaine trumpeted a classic win-win, noting the redevelopment plan “will transform this blighted area while providing much-needed housing,” while Babylon Town Supervisor Rich Schaffer commended Hochul “for taking proactive steps to address the longstanding blight in East Farmingdale.”
Sky’s the limit: An aerial view of the blighted Conklin Avenue property, where Albany is playing with house money.
“I’m pleased to see the state’s commitment to revitalizing this site,” Schaffer said in a statement. “We will ensure that any development aligns with the needs and values of our residents and community.”
Developers must submit their RFP response – and establish a $500,000 imprest account, essentially a down payment to cover transactional costs and other expenses – by Aug. 7.
That’s a relatively cheap buy-in and more than enough time for smart developers to jump in and get busy, according to the governor.
“We just secured a landmark housing deal that will make New York more affordable and livable, and now we’re getting to work to turn it into reality,” Hochul said. “Leveraging state-owned land is a significant opportunity to increase housing supply and help New Yorkers find a place to call home.”
