Tom Suozzi

We can make Long Island desirable again

Posted

In the 1970s and ’80s, New York City was crumbling and Nassau County was a paradise. Now the city is one of the most sought-after destinations in the world, and every day I hear friends and neighbors saying they don’t want to stay on Long Island. We can learn from this and fix things, but there’s work that needs to be done to understand the similarities and differences, the economics and the demographic trends.

In 1975, 40 years ago, the city was a fiscal mess. It was then that Mayor Abe Beame wanted help from the federal government, and the famous “Ford to New York: Drop Dead!” headline graced the New York Daily News.

The budget problems led to service cuts. Crime skyrocketed. Parks and subways were a mess. People were fleeing the city. Park Avenue was still home to the rich and beautiful, but from Harlem to the Bronx and from Bayside to Bedford Stuyvesant, people were looking to get out as they saw their communities falling apart.

Today in Nassau County, we face major fiscal problems. Unlike New York City decades ago, we don’t see a spike in crime, but our services are threatened, pockets of poverty are growing, parks are fraying, young college graduates refuse to move here and, of course, property taxes remain a serious burden.

The property tax cap is one of the most effective policies to stanch the bleeding, but new growth — smart growth — needs to continue to expand the tax base and create new revenue. New ideas to consolidate government or collaborate need to be implemented to reduce costs, and a new tax system needs to be explored.

More important, we need to understand that different communities are changing in different ways. One size doesn’t fit all. We need to understand what’s happening in each community and try and develop a comprehensive solution.

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