Bellone Talks Dollars in Melville

Steve Bellone, Babylon's town supervisor and the Democratic candidate for Suffolk County executive, paid a visit to Melville on Tuesday as part of a campaign to encourage a more business-friendly local government.

“We have to recognize that government has been the biggest barrier to economic development on Long Island,” he told local business leaders at a round table discussion at on Broadhollow Road. The biggest issue business leaders looked to address was with the County Health Department.

Jack McCarthy, owner of McCarthy’s Pub in Southampton and president of the Suffolk County Tavern and Restaurant Association said that minor regulations within the health department cased big problems concerning getting customers in the door.

“We put chairs on the sidewalk to draw people in so that they could eat outside if they wanted. The County Health Department came down and said we had too many chairs outside,” he said. “It defeated the whole purpose of trying to get more people in the restaurant.” He added that small restrictions such as the chair limit are major problems for restaurants in the Hamptons because most businesses only have 16 weeks during the summer to make money.

The health department has also stalled businesses from earning a profit due to the amount of time it takes to get permit approval, the bussiness leaders said.

“You have to go through one agency, then another and another. It draws the process out to three years when it could be six months,” Jay Grossman, owner of in Melville said.

Diane Romano, owner of Bellport Jewlers and president of the Bellport Chamber of Commerce, added that there is a lack of incentive within government to take care of issues quickly.

“In the private sector, name any big company and if there’s a computer problem, it’s going to be fixed within 24 hours. If it’s not, someone is fired. In government, there’s not that accountability,” she said.

Grant Hendricks of Bay Shore and owner of the Bismasco construction products company in Happaugue, said that the restrictions on Long Island have encouraged him to expand his business elsewhere.

“There’s no place I’d rather be than Long Island, but it’s easier to do business other places,” he said.

In response, Bellone said that he would come up with a performance system in which a date would be set within government agencies to complete each process of granting a permit. If the date isn’t met, the agency would automatically be flagged so officials can see which projects are falling behind and step in.

Another problem the business leaders addressed is what appears to be a lack of understanding between residents and elected officials.

“There seems to be a gap between government and people,” Grossman said, pointing to the failed . “Those restaurant guys thought that project needed to happen, but the people said not my taxes. That disconnect always seems to happen.”

Huntington Town Councilwoman Susan Berland, who is up for re-election, said that a similar situation happened with a proposal to build affordable housing within Huntington. “The disconnect is important. When it came to Avalon Bay, the perception that ‘those’ people are going to move in is a misconception.”

Bellone responded saying that government has to be more responsive in educating people about what projects are needed for long term financial success.

“There is no more important issue than figuring out how we get the economy moving again,” he said.

The round-table was one of several stops Bellone, who's taking on , the county treasurer, has made throughout Suffolk to discuss the local economy. He introduced his in Medford in which he made several references to modeling the County after North Carolina’s “Research Triangle,” an area made up of numerous high-tech companies and research-oriented universities.