As part of this week's Town Focus: Ronkonkoma series, Erin Geismar will be conducting quick interviews of everyone from community leaders to everyday people on the street. 
 George Schramm, president, Lake Ronkonkoma Civic Organization 
 How long have you lived in Ronkonkoma? Nine years. 
 Where did you live before that? Holbrook, and I grew up in Bethpage. 
 What issues are important to the civic organization? We have three focuses. There’s the lake itself. We want to ensure access and balance humane use with protecting the natural resources. There’s the Ronkonkoma Hub project, which is the development planned around the train station, which is really a unique kind of development for Long Island. And the land-use plan for the Portion Road corridor, and now that’s been approved, so we are looking ahead to a downtown revitalization. 
 What’s the goal of the land-use plan? To reduce suburban sprawl, to reconcentrate businesses to the central downtown area. We’d like that corridor to be a pedestrian-friendly downtown area, to bring back the village feel like you’d see in Huntington. 
 Your vision for Ronkonkoma is clear, but how would you define the community now? Well, there are different aspects of the community. This deals with business. Residentially, there are mostly single-family homes. The hub project will make available more housing options, specifically to appeal to a younger generation. When that is built, somebody who works on Wall Street or in midtown can live in Ronkonkoma and walk right to the train station. When they get home, there will be things for them to do. Right now we’re missing that element. We don’t have a large component that appeals to young people. 
 So, would you say Ronkonkoma is in a transition? Absolutely. That’s a good word for it. And in a positive way.

As part of this week's Town Focus: Ronkonkoma series, Erin Geismar will be conducting quick interviews of everyone from community leaders to everyday people on the street. George Schramm, president, Lake Ronkonkoma Civic Organization How long have you lived in Ronkonkoma? Nine years. Where did you live before that? Holbrook, and I grew up in Bethpage. What issues are important to the civic organization? We have three focuses. There’s the lake itself. We want to ensure access and balance humane use with protecting the natural resources. There’s the Ronkonkoma Hub project, which is the development planned around the train station, which is really a unique kind of development for Long Island. And the land-use plan for the Portion Road corridor, and now that’s been approved, so we are looking ahead to a downtown revitalization. What’s the goal of the land-use plan? To reduce suburban sprawl, to reconcentrate businesses to the central downtown area. We’d like that corridor to be a pedestrian-friendly downtown area, to bring back the village feel like you’d see in Huntington. Your vision for Ronkonkoma is clear, but how would you define the community now? Well, there are different aspects of the community. This deals with business. Residentially, there are mostly single-family homes. The hub project will make available more housing options, specifically to appeal to a younger generation. When that is built, somebody who works on Wall Street or in midtown can live in Ronkonkoma and walk right to the train station. When they get home, there will be things for them to do. Right now we’re missing that element. We don’t have a large component that appeals to young people. So, would you say Ronkonkoma is in a transition? Absolutely. That’s a good word for it. And in a positive way.

News

People of Ronkonkoma: George Schramm

Lake Ronkonkoma

Newsday

HLRONK05

Homepage Trending

Cyclospora: How to protect yourself

Jones Beach Bandshell free concert lineup

Trump accounts: What LI parents need to know

Summer Fun Book

NEWSDAY TV SHORTS

Vertical videos

Suffolk County officials Monday warned of scammers, preying primarily on the elderly, who direct people to liquidate their life savings to buy gold bars. NewsdayTV's Virginia Huie reports.

Gold bar scam warning in Suffolk County

NewsdayTV's Doug Geed heads to a new restaurant opened by the same owners who created Westhampton Beach Brewery.

Out East: Brewery opens new restaurant

NewsdayTV's Ken Buffa visited Garcia's Taco Bar in Brentwood to try their birria ramen.

Trendy Bites: Birria ramen

NewsdayTV's Marie Elena Martinez got a sneak peek at the new Babylon Whiskey Down Diner location, which is currently under construction with plans to open in the fall.

Take a peek inside Whiskey Down Diner's new location

For a quick trip not far from home, NewsdayTV's Elisa DiStefano checks out the Rockaway Hotel.

A getaway close to home for mom

A weaver from Huntington helped hide guns from the British at his home. NewsdayTV's Doug Geed reports.

America 250: The arsenal in Huntington

Joe Tosini, owner of River Center Shopping Center in Riverhead, said the businesses in the center lost power during Saturday's storms and that their electricity wasn't restored until late Tuesday afternoon. NewsdayTV's Shari Einhorn reports.

Riverhead shopping center back in business after 3-day power outage

NewsdayTV's Elisa DiStefano joined the volunteers of Save the Great South Bay to clean oysters. The oysters are cleaned weekly and then placed back into the bay, where they'll be able to help filter the water.

Help boost the Great South Bay oyster population

Juan Bonilla Lagos, who was arrested by ICE in October near his Plainview home, was freed from jail after nine months.

Plainview man detained by ICE freed from jail after 9 months 

As boaters set out on the water this summer, they will be paying more at the pump. NewsdayTV's Virginia Huie reports.

Boaters feeling the pinch at the pump 

<a href="https://www.newsday.com/video/newsdaytv-top-stories">Get more on these and other NewsdayTV stories</a>

Newsday TV

NewsdayTV Top Item

Brothel cop ignored emergency calls ... Driver sentenced in cop shooting ... Cyclospora on LI ... America 250: Rebuilding battle boats

Brothel cop ignored emergency calls ... Cyclospora on LI ... America 250: Rebuilding battle boats

News - megaslot

Newsday has the most up-to-date stories on Long Island & NTC. Join us & stay current with news articles on sports, business, health, technology & more.

Stay logged in.