long island

'Bedroom Reform' for Today's Housing Crisis

Tim W. Ferguson — Wed, 29 May 2024 10:31:04 -0400

Long Island, N.Y.’s East End has a housing price/supply crunch, like the United Kingdom. So it might want to look at an earnest argument out of the UK for addressing the scarcity by restricting or reallocating bedroom supply. (See this derivative post: https://medium.com/iipp-blog/meeting-housing-needs-within-planetary-boun...)

The scholars there found no actual shortfall of home square-footage in the British isles, but rather a hoarding of unnecessary bedroom space by a blessed slice of the population. Any Hamptonite (U.S. version) would quickly see how this applies locally, as McMansions with six or more bedrooms (nearly always with en-suite baths) are standard fare in new construction, and for only weekend or seasonal use in many situations.

Back in the UK, the policy wonks looking for “fair decarbonization of housing” measures acknowledge that some potential steps for redressing the bedroom imbalance carry obviously awkward implications. So they promote instead a tax on insufficiently justified sleeping space. (There’s a bit of Henry George in that.) However, this doesn’t fully capture the social dimensions of the UK problem, which is no longer Downton Abbey estates but empty nesters of more modest means who hang onto oversized residences for lack of preferred alternatives. Thus, it’s a “tenure” issue, and one aggravated by the cumbersome ritual of unfettered private-property ownership–it skews space toward older people with deeds.

If housing stock were better influenced by the state, bedroom space could be shuffled more easily among households as demographic needs change. The authors point to some Euro experiments. This more rational approach to domiciling appeals to certain academic minds, if not to the denizens of Long Island’s East End. One other reality check: The UK decarbonizers should make sure their own country’s “council” homes don’t share the static bias of New York City Housing Authority “projects.” Bigger apartments there, like those on fashionable stretches of Park Avenue, tend to stay with occupants who’ve aged beyond child-raising. Maybe, like the buyers of oversized Hamptons homes, they just wish to think the grandkids will come to visit.

See: https://timwferguson.com/2024/05/28/bedroom-reform-for-todays-housing-cr... H/T to Rent Free, the Reason magazine newsletter by Christian Britschgi, for flagging this UK item.

Shaving Time Off Suffolk County Homebuilding

Tim W. Ferguson — Fri, 12 Jan 2024 07:21:13 -0500

At the heart of N.Y. Long Island's Suffolk County, new Brookhaven town supervisor Dan Panico wants to remove processing steps, such as at the planning board, from new housing development. This is a first step toward significant new supply in one of America's tightest exurban markets. See: https://timwferguson.com/2024/01/11/long-island-supe-wants-to-build/

'Affordability' Near Hamptons...Or Maybe Not

Tim W. Ferguson — Sat, 23 Dec 2023 07:31:54 -0500

Long Island’s town of Southampton covers 295 square miles including a varied range of communities, some quite different from the village of Southampton that is familiar to seasonal visitors. One hamlet, called Riverside, is a pocket of relative distress, greatly Black and Latino-immigrant. It sits on the south side of the Peconic River, separating it from the more familiar Riverhead on the other side.

Sometimes Hamptonites lump the two together, though Riverhead is not part of Southampton town. That distinction has come to the fore as Southampton moves to bring development to Riverside—the first major such effort since Suffolk County opened a sheriff’s station, courthouse and jail there decades ago. Riverside has what so many East End communities say they need—“affordable” housing—and the town wants more of it there so as to contain the daily traffic throng to the Hamptons from points west (part of which, ironically, funnels through Riverside).

To do that it needs, among other investments, a big sewer plant. All well and good, but it turns out, as this latest useful report from the East End Beacon explains, this is not so welcome in Riverhead. There’s lots of news nowadays in these parts—the bridge between the affluent and preservationist South and North Forks of Long Island—and any transitions will merit further attention.

Warehousing hits a red line near Hamptons

Tim W. Ferguson — Tue, 31 Oct 2023 07:05:38 -0400

Riverhead town in eastern Long Island is the last major growth center in this gilded region. But a significant, subsidized project to redevelop a former aerospace property was rejected after neighbors protested. https://timwferguson.com/2023/10/25/ambitious-riverhead-is-back-to-squar...

Circling the Brain Drain

Rich Murdocco — Fri, 13 Jun 2014 12:56:42 -0400

It seems that Destination LI, “a nonprofit community building and educational organization dedicated to helping people create and sustain vibrant centers” on Long Island, has been quietly busy in recent months.

Recently, the group released a survey, which, to nobody’s surprise, shows that millennials are not exactly thrilled with Long Island’s housing options.

The solution? Those “vibrant” walkable communities that have been pitched so many times before. The survey also touched upon Long Island’s need for jobs that match millennial skillsets and salary expectations, two critical issues that policymakers must address.

In a nutshell, “the survey, conducted on social media web forums between Feb. 27 and March 24, drew 413 respondents.” To solicit responses, the group used sites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Reddit and others. Seventy-five percent of those who participated said that they either “agree” or “strongly agree” that Long Island’s housing options limit their ability to stay, with 58.7 percent saying they currently live with parents or relatives.

For perspective, consider this: According to U.S. Census data from 2010, there were 478,988 millennials in the Nassau-Suffolk region. Destination LI’s survey of 413 represents 0.08 percent of the sample size – far from a representative sample of that segment of population. Given the large gap between population and those surveyed online (which, by surveying standards, is a poor solicitation method), it’s important to take the results for what they are – anecdotal, but still an important commentary. Long Island clearly has issues with providing housing, but we’re going about it the wrong way.

The survey brings to light significant questions concerning Long Island. Is regional housing availability holding millennials back, or is it Long Island’s stagnant economy? The survey infers that walkable apartments keep millennials here, but what about affordable single-family homes? Are apartments the only housing option for this age group? Is more development the answer to our regional woes? Are the survey’s findings legitimate given the methodology?

Finally, the big question remains: Should developers be driving the regional conversation on housing needs?

The answer to any of these questions is up for debate, but the last one should resonate. Have Long Islanders become so apathetic that they now are reliant upon stakeholders to conduct surveys that not only get ample press coverage, but are sure to influence policy decisions on the regional level? Shouldn’t planners be conducting these studies, with their recommendations being based off appropriate methodology and professionalism?

Our policy solutions are only as good as the data that informs them. With land-use, the cost of failure is too expensive and repercussions too severe and far reaching to rely on stakeholder-driven solutions. We all are leaders in that we have the power to collectively shape our community. Let’s take back the reins and give our problems the thoughtful analysis they deserve.