Islip taps RXR for Long Island MacArthur Airport expansion plans

Islip Town has tentatively tapped New York City developer RXR for its expansion plans at Long Island MacArthur Airport, but skeptical town board members voted this week against spending $250,000 to advance the long-embattled project.

Islip Supervisor Angie Carpenter, in a statement to Newsday on Thursday, confirmed the town has zeroed in on RXR. The company’s past work includes office and residential projects in places ranging from Manhattan to Arizona, according to its website.

A spokesman for RXR declined to comment.

Islip began searching for a developer to pursue the project early last year. The main goals of the effort involve creating a new terminal to accommodate additional flights, as well as connecting the airport to the Ronkonkoma Long Island Rail Road station, nearby to the north.

A town committee tasked with fielding applications selected a company earlier this year, Newsday reported last month, but Thursday marks the first time Islip has named RXR as the finalist.

RXR still needs to be approved by Islip’s five-member town board before the hire is confirmed.

Islip Town gave developers two project options to choose from when it published its request for applications.

The first option would involve building an entirely new terminal north of the airport, which would have a direct physical connection to the railroad via something like a monorail or enclosed walkway. The second option would involve revamping the existing south terminal and figuring out an alternative way to integrate it with the LIRR station.

The details of RXR’s proposal haven’t been made public, but the company’s pitch included a new north terminal, according to Carpenter — the option she has long championed, yet one that’s been consistently challenged by town officials such as Councilman John Lorenzo.

Three board members — Lorenzo, DawnMarie Kuhn and Michael McElwee — voted Tuesday to withhold $250,000 that would have funded “outside legal counsel, project management and financial consultation and airport planning" to advance the initiative, according to a town resolution.

"Pulling this funding now would mean walking away from that groundwork just as we have engaged a reputable, experienced developer in RXR to help us evaluate the opportunity," Carpenter said in a written statement to Newsday. "We owe it to the taxpayers of Islip to do our due diligence with the professionals, attorneys and our proposer before closing any doors."

Lorenzo argues that before Islip builds a new terminal, Suffolk must have a plan to develop more than 40 acres of county-owned land just south of the LIRR station and north of the airport. That area historically has been called the Ronkonkoma Hub.

Suffolk County Executive Edward P. Romaine recently released an RFP, or request for developer proposals for that area, Newsday reported earlier this month. The deadline for submissions is Sept. 25.

Lorenzo wants the county to have those proposals in hand before Islip puts any more cash into its north terminal plans. He told Newsday "the cart is way in front of the horse at this moment."

“Now we want $250,000 more [and] we don’t even know what the county RFP is going to produce,” Lorenzo said. “So, I say we pump the brakes, we wait, we see what the RFP comes back from the county [with], and then we can move forward if need be and have a discussion.”

It’s unclear how the north terminal project may be impacted by the town’s refusal to spend the $250,000.

Carpenter argues that the money is needed to explore the project and figure out "whether a new north terminal at Long Island MacArthur Airport is the right move for our residents."

"We need real data on cost, feasibility, and long-term impact," she wrote in her statement. "I want to be clear: Exploring this possibility is not the same as committing to it."

At Tuesday’s meeting, Carpenter said that funding decision “will be tabled for a future discussion — hopefully.”

By Sam Kmack

sam.kmack@newsday.com

Sam Kmack covers the Town of Islip for Newsday. He is a graduate of the University of Southern California and previously worked as a city watchdog reporter in the Phoenix metro area, as well as an investigative journalist at the Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting.