Transit-Oriented Development

Suffolk County, New York

What is a TOD?

A Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) is a mixed-use residential and commercial area designed to maximize access to public transportation.

  • TODs often incorporate features that encourage transit ridership and reduce dependence on private automobiles by locating commercial, residential, office and entertainment uses within walkable distances.
  • A TOD neighborhood typically has a center with a transit station surrounded by higher-density development with progressively lower density development emanating outward from the center.

TODs offer:

  • enhanced access to the transit network by households of all incomes
  • improved access to local and regional amenities
  • improved workforce access to job opportunities
  • increased transit ridership
  • reduced transportation costs
  • reduced automobile trips and greenhouse gas emissions
  • improved public health due to increased walking and cycling
  • congestion relief and environmental benefits

Suffolk County Residential Site Planning and Architecture Design Guidelines



Why are TODs important to us?

TODs are a response to reverse the decades-long trend of businesses and young people leaving Suffolk County and our region, and to make our region competitive again by addressing the issues that have been combining together to drive them away:

  • high cost of living
  • a lack of quality, affordable rental housing
  • a lack of that type of housing in environments in which young people want to live, i.e., walkable downtowns
  • limited transportation options – auto-centric, no north-south mobility
  • scarcity of high paying jobs - talent leaves, the businesses – and jobs – follow

The Current Developments

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Copiague

Copiague Commons – 90 units
  • Two, four-story, energy-efficient buildings equipped with one- and two-bedroom multi-family apartment homes located across from the Long Island Rail Road station
  • Mixed-income development targeted at people making up to 60 or 100 percent of area median income
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East Farmingdale/Republic

  • Hinged on the reopening of the Republic Airport LIRR Station, this proposed TOD would incorporate 120-acres in the area around Conklin St. and Route 110 as well as the reconfiguration of the Airport Plaza shopping center
  • The development would consist of:
    • 1,750,000 SF of residential space
    • 300,000 SF of retail
    • 500,000 SF of commercial
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Heartland Town Square

  • Heartland Town Square, often touted as the “Town of Tomorrow” is a 450-acre community proposed for the former Pilgrim Psychiatric Center property in Brentwood
  • Key to the project is its walkability, and access to the Deer Park LIRR station.
  • $4 Billion project will include:
    • 9,300 residential units
    • 1,000,000 SF "life-style" retail center
    • 3,000,000 SF office space
    • hotel,convention center and aquarium
    • ample indoor and outdoor civic space
  • Specific policies will discourage automobile ownership by residents.
  • 35% of the total land area will be open space
  • A minimum of 10 % of all residential units in will be for-sale units
  • 10 % of residential units will be workforce units generally defined as housing for workers with incomes ranging from 60% to 120% of Area Median Income
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Huntington Station

The development sites along New York Avenue in Huntington Station north of the LIRR tracks include:

  • Northridge – a three-story, mixed-use building with 16 residential units above 6,000 SF retail. Delivered
  • Gateway Plaza – a three-story, mixed-use building with 66 residential units above 16,500 SF of commercial/retail space
  • Artist’s Lofts – a proposal for 49 affordable artist’s lofts – similar to Artspace in Patchogue
  • Columbia Terrace – 14 affordable condo units for Veterans, currently under construction
  • Hotel
  • 100,000 SF medical office building
  • 40% of the total number of residential units will be affordable
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Patchogue Village

The recent revitalization of Patchogue includes projects such as:

  1. Restoration of the Patchogue Theatre to its 1923 glory
  2. Patchogue Village YMCA – the new 54,000 SF facility opened in 2010 on W. Main Street
  3. New Village – the $110 million project created:
    • 291 apartments
    • 17,000 SF office space
    • 46,000 SF retail space
    • The development transformed Main Street and features a five-story tower – a replica of the Swezey’s Department Store spire that once rose from the same Four Corners
    • Artspace Patchogue Lofts – 45 units of affordable live/work housing for artists and their families and nearly 2,500 SF of retail space on the street level
  4. Copper Beech – a $21 million development featuring 80 attached townhomes
    • 50% of the units are workforce units
  5. Riverwalk – a 163-unit condominium development
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Port Jefferson Uptown Funk

The Village has partnered with the County, NYS Empire State Development, and the Long Island Rail Road and has broken ground on improvements in upper Port to enhance pedestrian connectivity and safety, revitalize blighted commercial properties, and promote safe living and economic growth.

  • Phase One upgrades the parking lot on the west side of Route 112 to create environmentally sustainable, well-lit access that connects The Hills apartment complex to the Port Jefferson LIRR station
  • Phase Two will upgrade the East, North, and South LIRR parking lots including a new layout, lighting and plaza entry
  • Phase Three will create Station Street, a new one-way street to provide entry to the new railroad parking lot as well as include additional parking and entry to the new housing developments
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Riverhead

  • Riverview Lofts – 116 units
    • Five-story, mixed-use development with 55 on-site parking spaces
    • 116 workforce rental apartments above ground-floor restaurant and retail uses
    • Will include studios, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments
  • Peconic Crossing – 45 units, delivered
    • Four-story multi-family, workforce apartment building
    • Plans include a ground-floor artist gallery, 34 parking spaces, and rooftop terrace
    • Preference given to artists and residents who were displaced by Hurricane Sandy
    • Additional 45 apartments planned
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Riverside

  • Riverside has the lowest median housing value and median household income in Suffolk County
  • The Riverside Overlay District which is comprised of seven distinct districts was formed to transform and uplift the community and connect people to one another
  • The development will have:
    • 2,267 residential units
    • 133,517 SF of retail
    • 62,000 SF of professional/medical offices
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Ronkonkoma Hub

The Ronkonkoma Hub presents a unique development opportunity for Long Island to capitalize on the nexus of transportation modes in the heart of Suffolk County with the Long Island Railroad, Long Island MacArthur Airport and major roadway arteries. The mixed-use development addresses the Island's critical need for rental homes in a walkable, transit-oriented venue to attract our young professionals and workforce as well as our seniors who are interested in downsizing their living accommodations.

  • Upon completion, the nearly 50-acre Ronkonkoma Hub development will have:
    • 1,450 multi-family residential units – 20% affordable
    • 195,000 square feet of retail space
    • 360,000 SF office/commercial space
    • 60,000 flex space to be utilized for conference, exhibition, hospitality, and/or residential uses
  • The $112 million first phase of development includes 489 residential units consisting of six 4- and 5-story buildings and:
    • street-level stores
    • upper-level offices and apartments
    • located steps from the Ronkonkoma LIRR Station
  • Investments from both local and state agencies have been a critical component in the development of the Hub
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Speonk Commons

  • A transit oriented development constructed in the Town of Southampton, less than 300 feet from the Speonk LIRR station
  • Georgica Green Ventures, LLC and the Town of Southampton Housing Authority are the co-developers of this $30 million project
  • The co-developers will construct six two-story buildings encompassing a total of 38 rental apartments, 37 of which will be affordable units, 4,357 square feet of commercial space and 3,022 square feet of community space
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Wyandanch Village

  • The first transit-oriented development to break ground on Long Island in decades, this 40-acre public-private partnership TOD creates a vibrant downtown centered upon the existing LIRR Wyandanch station
  • The core of the Downtown includes:
    • 177 residential units between two mixed-use buildings – delivered
    • 35,000 SF retail
    • one-acre transit plaza – delivered
    • 920-space MTA parking structure – delivered
    • full-service LIRR Station
    • additional 112,000 – 197,000 SF commercial building
  • 40 Station Drive – first of the two buildings, five-story, 91 rental units
  • 10 Station Drive – second building, four-story, 86 rental units
    • 70% of both building rentals are affordable
  • An ice rink in the plaza during winter months. In the summer, a fountain with room for events like farmer’s markets, festivals, and other arts and cultural events
  • The 920-space MTA parking facility is directly adjacent to the train station
  • The last piece of the core of the new downtown is Building C, or 20 Station Drive, which will house an anchor commercial tenant, with between 112,000 to 197,000 SF of space in three to five stories
  • 20 Station Dr. will have 10,000 SF designated for the Long Island Music Hall of Fame and Museum
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The Boulevard In Yaphank

  • 322-acre neighborhood-style development that will include retail shops, restaurants, office space, parks and open space
  • The development will consist of:
    • 850 residential units
    • 327,500 SF of retail
    • 550,000 SF of office/industrial/ flex space
    • A 150,000 SF hotel
  • The first phase of construction at the site will include the Reserve at the Boulevard, a 240-unit luxury apartment community with a host of amenities

Contact

H. Lee Dennison Building
100 Veterans Memorial Highway
2nd Floor
Hauppauge, NY 11788-0099

Economic Development and Planning

(631) 853-4800

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