By Steve Levy
A recent article noted that the beautiful grounds of the former St. Joseph’s Academy in Brentwood may be slated for needed housing. This is an ideal opportunity to expand the concept of two-family housing in select, appropriate locations on Long Island.
Governor Kathy Hochul got into hot water last year when she proposed more accessory apartments on Long Island. The problem wasn’t her desire to see more rental units, it was her attempt to have the state supersede local zoning.
She has since shifted focus towards incentivizing higher density through greater funding for developers and host communities. Those incentives should encourage the construction of two-family homes in clustered developments that are segregated from typical single-family communities.
While shoehorning two-family homes into individual plots in a single-family neighborhood would engender significant opposition, having two-family attached homes in a 150-unit gated complex would make sense. It’s similar to what I proposed in Yaphank during my administration as Suffolk County Executive in the early 2000s.
A two-family home provides rental income to the prospective owner, thereby enhancing the ability to procure a mortgage. It also expands the rental base that is so desperately needed on Long Island.
When we know there is going to be a massive new housing complex constructed that is segregated from single-family communities, it is the perfect time and place to incentivize the two-family concept. Why not make the Brentwood site a model for the future?
Steve Levy is President of Common Sense Strategies, a political consulting firm. He served as Suffolk County Executive, as a NYS Assemblyman, and host of “The Steve Levy Radio Show.” He is the author of “Solutions to America’s Problems” and “Bias in the Media.” www.SteveLevy.info, Twitter @SteveLevyNY, steve@commonsensestrategies.com