Building As-of-Right
There seems to be a development controversy being covered in the newspaper every other day now. The coverage of these hearings essentially goes as follows: Residents Raise Concern over Proposal in Anytown Residents from Anytown voiced their concerns at a Town Hall...
The Age of the Mega-Project
The Age of the Mega-Project The times, they are a’ changing. Long-stalled projects within the Town of Islip (and across Long Island) are getting new life thanks to pro-growth government incentives, focused implementation and the perceived growing acceptance of...
Robert Moses: The Last Master Builder (From the Long Island Press, December 2013)
The following was written by Spencer Rumsey for the Long Island Press. The online version can be seen here. The one person who did more than any other human being to shape the future of Long Island was born in Connecticut on Dec. 18, 1888, and died at Good Samaritan...
Zeitgeist
A business that is responsive to the changing climate is one that survives, and Long Island’s developers are no exception to this basic building tenant. When the recession hit and real estate activity ground to a halt, the builders faced a multifaceted dilemma. Do we...
The Cost of Housing
The following was written for LIBN's Young Island: Just when you think you’re out, they pull you back in. This week’s piece was going to be on an issue other than affordable housing and the brain drain on Long Island (such as the apparent demolition of Inisfada and...
“Brain Drain” Should Not Dictate Our Land Use Policy
Last week, my piece on affordable housing options for Long Island’s millennials went viral, being shared across Twitter, LinkedIn and in urban planning circles. Thank you for supporting my message of informed policymaking. I explored the region’s tendency to accept...
Our Flawed Housing Policy is the Real Brain Drain
The following was written for LIBN's Young Island: I’ve written about the topic of affordable housing multiple times on Young Island. It’s both our greatest regional failure, and the key to our success in the 21st century. Yet, for such an important topic, there is...
Grossman: When It Comes to the Shore, You Can’t Beat Nature
The following was written by Karl Grossman, a friend of the Foggiest Idea. Karl Grossman is professor of journalism at the State University of New York/College at Old Westbury and chief investigative reporter at Long Island’s WVVH-TV. And he’s the host of the...
Reflecting on Sandy, and Planning for the Next Big One
Sandy was created by some extraordinary meteorological circumstances. we must plan ahead for the “Next Big One”. However, the silver lining to all the misery the superstorm brought upon Long Island and beyond is that it made pause, and take stock of where we are as a...
One Year After Hurricane Sandy, We Are Still Vulnerable
One year after Hurricane Sandy rumbled up to our shores, Long Island is still woefully vulnerable. Our coastal systems are ill-prepared for storms, our development patterns show minimal respect to our flood plain and erosion areas, and our electrical infrastructure is...
