Time to settle Syosset mall debate

It's been 17 years. Shouldn't that be long enough?

Long enough to decide whether developer Bill Taubman can build his upscale Mall at Oyster Bay in Syosset. Long enough to decide whether a small but fierce knot of neighborhood opponents will succeed in scuttling a privately financed $700 million project that promises to create 3,500 construction jobs and 2,000 permanent retail jobs and generate $50 million in new tax revenue, including $9 million in Nassau County property taxes and $5 million for Syosset schools.

In his State of the State address last week, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo bemoaned how long it takes to get stuff built in New York. "It just can't take three years to put a shovel in the ground," the governor said of general infrastructure projects. "Fifteen years of planning and talking is too long," he said of the Tappan Zee Bridge.

Welcome to Syosset, governor. We're still clearing our throats around here after three or 15 years.

Under pressure from jittery neighbors, the project was rejected by the Town of Oyster Bay. But the proposed mall has been declared a project of "regional significance" by the governor's Long Island Regional Economic Development Council. That's an important -- though not a final -- leg up.

And over the next few weeks, the future of the long-discussed mall will get another thorough hashing out in what promises to be a raucous debate before the Long Island Regional Planning Council.

If history isn't a guide, this could settle the matter once and for all.

WAITING FOR . . .

1. Long Island Expressway's Exit 47

2. Trump on the Ocean

3. The New Nassau Coliseum

4. The Mall at Oyster Bay

5. Godot

ASKED AND UNANSWERED: Oh, there it is! Now that Nassau's found new money to rehire 40 laid-off social service workers, anyone know of any other hidden cash just laying around? . . . When will Albany have any good news for parents and children in Roosevelt? The latest downer? Suspended state grants . . . Bus fare hikes are coming next to Suffolk. Is it time for some bold new ideas about the whole buses-in-the-suburbs idea? Clearly, the same old thinking isn't enough anymore . . . The market may be flooded, but did you know Long Island now has 1,118 fewer real estate agents? Says the annual survey from Multiple Listing Service of Long Island. Don't worry, though. You'll still find one.

LONG ISLANDERS OF THE WEEK: JOHN CAPANO'S FAMILY

It's bad enough when anyone is shot to death. But really, what could be more tragic than this? An off-duty federal agent killed as he tried to stop a robber outside a drugstore, the fatal bullet seemingly fired by a retired Nassau police officer who was also trying to help. That's several tragedies -- not one -- on the same Seaford sidewalk. At the funeral on Friday, Capano's family had every right to explode in anger and bitterness. They chose not to. They came to the church with shared condolences, not with blame. With perfect clarity, Capano's brother James explained. "Let us not forget others responded that day to stop a crime," he said. "Please remember, they have family and acted as John did. However this turns out, I ask that we pray for them, too."

Email ellis@henican.com

Follow on Twitter @henican