Hempstead Town must say yes to Baldwin future

Want to find a way to revitalize Long Island communities? To build much-needed rental housing? To transform a neighborhood?

Start with Baldwin.

In what could be an enormous step for Baldwin — and the region — the Town of Hempstead is poised to approve the first significant project associated with the decadeslong effort to remake the hamlet. It's a $100-million, five-story development with 215 units of rental housing, 5,000 square feet of restaurant and retail space, and an open plaza on 1.7 acres of land that's currently a car storage lot on Grand Avenue and Sunrise Highway, near the Long Island Rail Road station.

A town board vote is expected next month — and a "yes" couldn't come soon enough. The residents of Baldwin have waited too long. This is the town's chance to show it won't repeat the unwarranted and frustrating delays of the past and a way for elected officials to keep their promises about a revitalized Baldwin.

It hasn't been easy. Hempstead officials have at times stood in the way of Baldwin's success, either by putting off decisions or, most recently, wrongly attempting to institute a moratorium on development there. Their new efforts bode well — but there's still a lot to do.

The Grand at Baldwin, as the project of the Breslin Realty Development Corp. is called, is only the beginning. Baldwin, the recipient of a $10 million state grant in 2019, awaits hearings and approvals for several other mixed-use projects, along with important improvements to streets, sidewalks and public spaces in the hamlet's tired downtown.

What make this project so different is that Baldwin residents desperately want revitalization to happen. Most recently, as some community members voiced concerns over traffic flow into and out of the new project, they worked with the developer and the town to quickly find solutions.

What a novel concept. Members of the community, development executives, and elected officials came together and found answers. And after too many starts and stops, project approval is just one town board vote away. 

Long Island at large can learn from Baldwin's example. Elected officials shouldn't delay their obligation to negotiate workable plans with developers and communities. Developers should hear community concerns and respond to them, without stalking away in the face of objections or lack of progress. And residents must recognize their own communities' needs, realizing that new housing and other development is necessary and achievable, and embracing solutions that work for everyone.

As for Baldwin, Hempstead officials must follow their own new road map. Baldwin residents are depending on them to approve the Breslin project soon, prioritize the hamlet's other redevelopment plans, and let Baldwin soar as a bustling, economically vibrant community.