Thursday, October 1, 2026
After years of starts, stops and behind-the-scenes work, a long-discussed redevelopment project in downtown Hempstead is finally coming into focus.
Developer Rashid Walker who grew up just minutes from Main Street has secured the 257 Main Street site, where his firm First Street Companies plans to build a 246-unit apartment complex with retail space and parking.
The project adds to a broader effort by local officials and private developers to re-energize Main Street with housing, commerce and pedestrian activity, marking a significant new investment in the village’s downtown.
For Walker, the project is both a professional and personal milestone. A longtime real estate executive with experience at firms including AvalonBay Communities, JPMorgan Asset Management and Wood Partners, Walker said the Hempstead development represents the culmination of nearly a decade of effort to unlock a site he began working on in 2015.
The project also reflects First Street’s broader strategy of targeting multifamily markets across the New York metropolitan region, including recent collaborations with Charlotte-based Grubb Properties on large-scale residential developments in Long Island City and Lower Manhattan.
Walker said the idea behind 257 Main Street is rooted in both local history and present-day housing needs.
“The vision really is to bring high-quality multifamily housing to the Village of Hempstead,” Walker said. “I think the village has been overlooked for a long time, and this is an opportunity to bring quality housing back.”
He added that Long Island faces a significant shortage of multifamily housing options, with restrictive zoning and limited developable land making projects like this increasingly rare.
“There’s a dearth of multifamily housing on Long Island,” he said. “So, I think this would be much needed.”
The development is expected to include roughly 6,100 square feet of retail space at street level, designed to attract neighborhood-serving businesses. Walker said the tenant mix is still being finalized but could include cafés, a bagel shop or other local retail establishments intended to support daily foot traffic.
Village officials have expressed strong support for the project, pointing to both its economic potential and its connection to a local developer with deep roots in the community.
“Very excited about this project, not only because it supports the Village of Hempstead’s downtown revitalization, but because we have a developer who grew up in Hempstead,” said Mayor Waylyn Hobbs Jr., noting the project aligns closely with the village’s long-term revitalization goals. “Someone that not only knows our history but knows our path forward.”
Local business leaders also see the project as a meaningful opportunity to strengthen the area’s commercial base. LaShawn Lukes, president of the Greater Hempstead Chamber of Commerce, emphasized the importance of mixed-use development in supporting small businesses.
“Since there are store fronts downstairs, it gives the small businesses an opportunity to be a part of the new development process with affordable rent while having the option of having tenants and possible customers right upstairs,” she said.
Lukes also said the development could help bring residents closer together.
“I believe that the project itself, is going to stimulate a sense of community.”
Beyond its physical footprint, Walker hopes the project could help shift perceptions of downtown Hempstead and encourage further private investment in the area.
“I hope it’s a catalyst for new development and new investment in the village,” he said. “That people have confidence that the village is a place open for business, and that you can do well and do good at the same time.”
The project’s path to approval has been unusually long, spanning nearly a decade and weathering multiple mayoral administrations, zoning debates and pandemic-related delays. A key milestone came with the approval of a 25-year payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement— called a PILOT— that helped move the financing structure forward.
A groundbreaking is anticipated by July, pending final preparations. Construction is expected to begin in late summer
For Walker, the development represents more than a single project, it is a statement about what is possible in Hempstead’s future.
Village leaders and developers alike are hoping the project marks not just the completion of a long-delayed deal, but the beginning of a broader transformation for downtown Hempstead.
