My wife and I moved into Roslyn Heights with our 18-month old daughter almost one year ago. Our intention has always been to make this community our home. Naturally we are very much in favor of the Town of North Hempstead owning and operating a newly renovated facility in Roslyn Heights, and we would be happy to pay to join.
The success of the park in neighboring East Hills has begun to lure away future young families from Roslyn Heights. Rather than witness the decline of what was once a vibrant local community, the town board can take advantage of this opportunity to provide a needed service to its residents.
A high-quality pool, park, and tennis facility will provide benefits town-wide for generations to come. It will increase property values, but more than that, the facility will help to rebuild a sense of community that was lost when the park closed. Isn’t this one of the primary goals of our local government? Here is an opportunity for the town board to help provide Roslyn Heights with a better chance at future growth, and this type of opportunity will not come back around.
Besides the current owner and his family, I have not heard one legitimate opposing claim. Selfish arguments based purely on the fears of tax hikes are being inflated by petty politicians seeking political gain in the coming election. I do not mean to belittle tax fears, they are real, perhaps now more then ever. However, I do not think that this is reason enough to stop the town from taking action.
I find it very odd that even though the town has not made public any figures pertaining to the estimated costs and potential revenues associated with the park, the opposition has already concluded that it will be a colossal failure and that everyone’s taxes will raise exponentially. These alarmist claims come from no actual data and merely play on people’s fears. I am not trying to convince anyone to withhold their opinion, but if the opposition wishes to change my mind, or more importantly convince the Town Board, they should need a more potent argument then arbitrarily claiming that this action will affect their tax dollars. Town Supervisor Kaiman has stated on many occasions that the Board will only move forward if they can find a revenue neutral option, and that only those who choose to willingly join the club will be financially responsible.
When the Town Board releases their estimates I will pay close attention. If they feel the transaction can be executed with minimal risk to the local taxes, then I am behind it. I care very deeply about my family and local community and I believe this park to be a badly needed and welcomed addition to Roslyn Heights.
Jared Shapiro
Roslyn Heights
