Islip Town Officials Hold Informational Meeting On Heartland Development Project

Islip Town officials recently held an informational meeting concerning the proposed Heartland development project.

Town Planning Department officials laid out the proposal and offered a detailed analysis of the projected impact of the development to the Town.

In addition, during the meeting the members of the Town Board asked the Planning staff to address their chief questions and concerns surrounding the Heartland development.

The project, which would create retail and office space and residential units to land on the Pilgrim State Psychiatric Center property in Brentwood, would cost local taxpayers a total of $3.7 million for the first five years of development, according to a report in Newsday.

The proposed plan, which would require a zone change for the area, includes building 9,000 apartments, 3.2 million square feet of office space as well as 1 million square feet of retail built over the next 32 years, Newsday reports.

The project would also require hiring about 23 new town employees.

‘This meeting is an important part of my pledge to restore transparency to the governmental process," Supervisor Angie Carpenter said. "Our Planning Department staff have been working tirelessly to analyze the impact of this proposal from every angle, and it was important that we held this meeting ahead of any further action on the part of the Town.”

Dozens of residents also attended the meeting to join in the review of the Heartland project.

The next public hearing on the project will be held on April.

Residents can submit comments in advance of the April 26th meeting through the Town’s online submission form, which can be accessed on the Town’s website at www.islipny.gov.