Labor union criticizes AvalonBay developer
Artist renderings of a proposed East Farmingdale redevelopment project. Credit: Town of Babylon
A developer being considered by the Town of Babylon for a major project near East Farmingdale's Airport Plaza has come under fire from the Service Employees International Union.
SEIU Local 32 BJ, which represents 70,000 building workers across New York City and Long Island, criticized developer AvalonBay Communities' safety record on construction jobs and urged the town to select another developer at a town board meeting on Thursday.
"AvalonBay is not the kind of responsible developer that should be invited into East Farmingdale unless safeguards are put into place to protect workers and the public," said an SEIU member, Tony Moran, reading a prepared statement.
The union said the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration has found 260 worker safety violations on AvalonBay projects nationwide since 2005.
Virginia-based AvalonBay, which operates 10 projects across Long Island and is one of the largest landlords in the country, did not respond to a request for comment last week.
The company is one of four being considered by the town to act as master developer for what could be a $1 billion project with 120 acres of housing, commercial and community space on the busy Route 110 corridor at Conklin Street.
SEIU 32BJ has been working to unionize AvalonBay workers for at least a year, spokeswoman Rachel Cohen said. The union has released several reports critical of company business practices and recently pushed a shot-for-shot parody mocking one of the company's marketing videos on YouTube.
Babylon Town spokesman Kevin Bonner did not address questions about the union's safety claims directly but wrote in an email that the town will consider "all factors" in choosing a master developer for the project, including "past experience, capacity to carry out the work, and references related to previous work products."
Town officials expect to select a master developer by early 2015, he said.
Nicholas Spangler is a general assignment reporter and has worked at Newsday since 2010.
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