The following article is from the April 2007 issue of
Thirteen years from now, long after Tom Suozzi finishes his term as county executive for Nassau County, his "Vision for 2020 [1]" will just be coming to life.
On March 13, 2007, in his sixth state of the county address, Tom Suozzi did more than address the issue of high property taxes that are always associated with Nassau County. He pledged to work together with town supervisors and mayors to create a smart growth plan for Nassau County and create a sustainable living agenda by the year 2020.
Suozzi identified locations that are prime for economic development. They include the Nassau HUB in the village of Hempstead, the Glen Cove waterfront, and the Hempstead Turnpike around the Belmont racetrack. Suozzi has pledged to work with the town officials to create smart growth concepts in these areas that will spur new jobs to boost the county's economy.
Just the day before his address, Suozzi met residents and business owners at the Hempstead Village Library to discuss downtown revitalization in their town. Over $3.2 million was promised to support beautification projects and to widen the median on Peninsula Boulevard.
In addition to addressing the need for smart growth and redevelopment in Nassau, Suozzi announced his "Healthy Nassau" initiative to make Nassau County the healthiest in the country by 2020. His plans are to build upon existing initiatives and create new ones that will sustain healthy air, land, and water and to encourage healthy living.
To promote healthy air policies, Suozzi announced his administration's partnership with Ron Simms, the county executive of Kings County in Washington State, and the Center for Clean Air Policy to create an initiative that will bring together large cities and counties to discuss the impacts of global warming.
Suozzi praised the voters of Nassau County and the bipartisan support of the legislature to pass two open space conservation bonds that will give the county $150 million to purchase the remaining open space parcels. Suozzi announced the county's purchase of Myers farms in Woodbury -- one of five remaining farms in Nassau County.
To sustain Nassau's clean and healthy water supply, Suozzi announced a countywide water resource management plan to preserve and protect the counties water supply.
If Suozzi and his successors stick to his vision for 2020, Nassau County just might be the healthiest and most sustainable county in the county after all.