Developers say Heartland project moving ahead
A rendering of Heartland Town Square which David Wolkoff and his father Jerry Wolkoff want to develop. Credit: Newsday/Karen Wiles Stabile
The 6-minute, 32-second video clip shows a confident David Wolkoff, son of developer Gerald Wolkoff, discussing what he hopes will one day be the sights and sounds of a massive mini-city - on the grounds of the former Pilgrim State Hospital in Brentwood - that has grown even bigger in size in the past few years.
The video popped up on the Internet in the past few days, said David Wolkoff, president of his father's development company, Hartland, as a means of reminding people the $4-billion plan to build the so-called Heartland Town Square - the biggest such development ever on Long Island - is alive.
The video, Wolkoff said, "is a great way to start the new year, especially since we have a great feeling going forward. It's a great way to respond to some of the critics and to people who forgot us." The video, at www.youtube.com/watch?v= payoIQLD-lw, went out to 50,000 people, including civic leaders and business leaders earlier this week.
The project would convert 460 acres to a smart-growth development, with about 9,000 apartments and more than 5.3 million square feet of offices, hotels, restaurants, cinemas and civic space.
Islip Town officials have expressed concern about the project's size. But instead of scaling back in the past few years, the project has grown, from about 15 million square feet to 16 million square feet, said Islip planning commissioner Dave Genaway.
The Wolkoffs are unapologetic. "We need that density for a project of this size to work," David Wolkoff said.
David Wolkoff said he and his family remain enthusiastic and optimistic about the project, despite the slow pace of the approval process. So just how far along are things? Wolkoff said, "We feel we're moving very close to a head."
Town Supervisor Phil Nolan has insisted the project be built in stages so that it will be easier to manage and supervise. "A lot of us support this, but the devil is in the details," Nolan said. "The project is not yet before the planning board, and that says a lot."
Genaway said the town must approve a "generic" environmental impact statement before building plans can be OK'd.
