Letter To The Editor: Stop The Ronkonkoma HUB

The following letter was sent to Sachem Patch by Mary Calamia of Long Island Matters in opposition to the Ronkonkoma HUB project, a 50-plus acre redevelopment initiative surrounding the LIRR Ronkonkoma train station. It is reprinted here in its entirety.

There has been much written about the "brain drain" on Long Island and the efforts to resolve it by constructing large scale, high density, mixed use housing developments. It sounds great on paper...keeping our young people on Long Island by providing them with "affordable housing."

This strategy has garnered much support...at least by those who stand to make great financial and political gains by urbanizing suburbia. But there is a rapidly growing opposition to this tactic. Long Islanders who value their communities are beginning to awaken to this overdevelopment of our communities and are unwilling to allow Long Island to become the "6th borough of New York City."

There is far more to this story than the developers' professional renderings indicate. We are not looking at affordable housing for young professionals here--not with rents in the $2000-$2500 range.

We are looking at overcrowded schools; police, fire, and rescue services being stretched beyond their capabilities; drastically increased traffic and wear and tear on roads that are already impossible to navigate at certain times; and a huge burden on social services and medical facilities. The enormous weight of these ventures will fall on the shoulders of Long Island taxpayers and the environmental impact will be catastrophic. We will be experiencing a population density that the infrastructure of Long Island was never meant to handle.

I urge you to please give equal time to the other side of this rapidly developing story. Long Islanders deserve to know the truth about what is happening in their back yards--projects like Islip Pines and the Ronkonkoma Hub (see attached flyer) that are coming very close to fruition.

Long Island Matters is a grassroots organization of Long Islanders who want to preserve the way of life for which our parents and grandparents sacrificed so much. Our goal is to educate fellow Long Islanders about the current plan to irrevocably change the fabric of Long Island from suburb to city...from peaceful bedroom communities to a bustling metropolis.

Sincerely,
Mary Calamia
Long Island Matters