Wallet Watch newsletter: What if your boss was also your landlord?
Local magazine publisher Kirby Marcantonio has proposed the condos on a vacant East Hampton lot for local businesses to house workers.
The high cost of housing on Long Island is nothing new, and neither is its impact on hiring. But in the years since the pandemic, the crisis has only gotten worse. It's an economic pressure that has been bleeding into a labor crisis on the Twin Forks for years now, pushing businesses to try to solve the problem by supplying workers with places to live.
"If you don't provide housing, it's really almost impossible to run a business," said Tracy Mitchell, executive director at Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor.
That's led to a radical proposal from local magazine publisher Kirby Marcantonio — he wants to build condos to sell to employers, who can then rent to their employees. Whether the development moves forward or not is contingent on the Town of East Hampton passing legislation to regulate employer-sponsored housing.
Marcantonio's pitch might be new, but businesses have been providing housing to employees for decades on the East End. And there are other projects in progress, including planning for workforce housing at Stony Brook Medicine's campuses in Stony Brook and Southampton.
But before we get caught up in the excitement, let's take a step back and think: Do you want your employer to also be your landlord?
Some East Hampton residents and labor activists have said linking employment with housing could have a chilling effect on workers' willingness to speak up about inequities or poor conditions.
"Employer-provided housing sets up a situation where someone relies on the same person or entity for both their home and their livelihood," said Alaina Varvaloucas, executive director of Worker Justice Center of New York. "The potential of losing both at once creates a power imbalance where workers are less likely to come forward about unlawful conditions."
We want to know your thoughts. Share your opinion with walletwatch@newsday.com.wic
Read more about employer-sponsored housing on Long Island here.
From our readers
William Olson in an email said:
We have a small farm in Westhampton. Today we went to Eastport, and I noticed that gas was up 20¢ a gallon from last week to $4.20, and diesel that we use in our tractor was [up] 30¢ a gallon!
There was some hope earlier this summer that we'd see gas prices drop after news of a potential ceasefire in the war with Iran. The escalation of the conflict, however, means that here on Long Island, we're looking at prices over $4 per gallon for regular gasoline these days.
There's a few ways to save on gas, my colleague James T. Madore has reported:
- Drive less. One Long Islander said she's doing this by running errands on her way to and from work.
- Fill up at shopping clubs that offer lower prices like Costco or BJ's Wholesale Club.
- Keep up with vehicle maintenance. A few ways to do this: Check spark plugs and tire inflation.
- Slow down. Your vehicle's engine needs to work harder at speeds above 50 miles per hour.
- Accelerate and brake gently.
- Time your fuel-ups. Sunday is the most affordable day to buy gas, while mid week — especially Wednesday through Friday — is usually more expensive.
- You might also be able to save money if you can pay in cash.
You can also check gas station prices in Suffolk and Nassau counties at gasbuddy.com, although it should be noted that the information is crowdsourced.
Have a question you'd like to submit? Confused by a bill? Spotted a price hike? Ask our team and we might answer it in the next edition. Email walletwatch@newsday.com or click here.
Brianne Ledda covers personal finance and affordability for Newsday. She previously covered Southold and Greenport for The Suffolk Times and is a graduate of Stony Brook University.
