Babylon civic group, school district concerned about impact of tax breaks

A group of civic leaders is asking the Babylon Industrial Development Agency to halt further tax abatements to apartment complexes.

A half dozen residents, along with the Lindenhurst school district superintendent and a board member, came to the IDA’s meeting on Tuesday. John Lisi of Lindenhurst spoke for the Town of Babylon Civic Coalition, which is composed of more than a dozen civic associations in the town. Lisi told the IDA board that residents are concerned about the negative impact of apartment developments on communities, including increasing traffic and the burden placed on the Southwest Sewer District. In addition, he said, there is the impact on school districts.

“Generous tax abatements granted to developers undermine the ability of these school districts to manage their budgets and place large financial burdens on the individual homeowner-taxpayers,” Lisi said.

Lindenhurst Superintendent Dan Giordano did not speak to the board, but said after the meeting that he was concerned about the planned 260-unit Tritec development in Lindenhurst. Tritec is seeking a tax abatement from the IDA.

“In the end, it could impact us greatly,” Giordano said.

Tom Dolan, acting chief executive of the IDA, said the agency is awaiting the results of an independent study by National Development Council of Manhattan before offering Tritec an abatement. In the past five years the IDA has given tax abatements ranging from 10 to 40 years to six apartment complexes.
 Apartment complexes on Long Island, including those in Patchogue and Farmingdale, have received assistance from both town and county IDAs. Town and county IDAs often will provide tax abatements to apartment development projects in part because they bring construction jobs and a handful of permanent jobs to the area. When considering housing, the IDA also emphasizes factors like the inclusion of affordable housing and proximity to the downtown.

Affordable housing units do “not outweigh the overall negative impacts to all other segments of the population,” Lisi said. He asked the IDA “to cease supporting housing development, as one of your desired goals.”

Dolan said business owners often ask about more housing options for their workforce to allow the business to remain on Long Island.

“I think we play a vital role in that,” he said. “For Long Island, to keep the workforce here, I think it’s important that we’re involved.”

By Denise M. Bonilla

denise.bonilla@newsday.comdenisebonilla

Denise Bonilla has worked at Newsday since 2003 and covers the Town of Babylon, including the villages of Lindenhurst and Amityville.