Apartments for homeless veterans coming to Island Park

The Tunnel to Towers Foundation plans to tear down a derelict motel in Island Park and build more than 40 apartments for homeless veterans on the site — the state's first veterans village.

The foundation made the announcement Monday morning with local and county officials to redevelop the site of the condemned Long Beach Motor Inn on Austin Boulevard.

The county donated the property to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, which hopes to build 42 apartments at the facility, as well as providing services such as mental health counseling and job placement.

The foundation was started by Frank Siller in honor of his brother FDNY firefighter Stephen Siller, who died on Sept. 11, 2011, after running through the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel in full gear to the World Trade Center before it collapsed.

The foundation is building veterans villages around the country to house about 6,500 veterans so far in California, Texas and Arizona. Frank Siller estimated there are about 40,000 homeless veterans nationwide.

"We're going to make sure veterans have a home and we will not let any veteran sleep on any street in America, it is not right, and we will never let it happen," he said at the news conference in Mineola. "We made a promise, I swear, that we will take care of every homeless American in America, we will provide them, not just with a home, but with all the services they need so they can assimilate back into the greatest country in the world because of them and people like them."

The last census found there were about 38,000 total veterans in Nassau County. The exact current number of homeless veterans is unclear, officials said. But the Long Island Coalition for the Homeless counted about 100 homeless veterans on Long Island last year, which they said was down from about 700 homeless vets as of a decade ago.

The foundation is spending $10 million to build the newly planned village. The property was purchased by the county in 2017 for $3.7 million and donated to the foundation. The former motor lodge was notorious for drug activity and prostitution and became dilapidated after flooding from Superstorm Sandy, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said.

Officials from the Town of Hempstead and Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (R-Island Park), a former town councilman, helped transfer the property before the donation was approved by the county’s planning commission.

Housing for homeless veterans is sorely needed, said Ralph Esposito, director of Nassau County Veterans Services. He said more homeless veterans may be inclined to seek shelter if offered permanent housing.

"This is a big plus for us and it means a lot so we can finally house veterans in real housing, not just temporary," Esposito said. "We have too many vets on the streets. It’s heartbreaking. They're very proud people and [would] rather be in the cold, and need help with mental illness. They need to have a permanent place for life. It means so much to veterans to find a place to live forever."

Officials said the new facility will also include veteran support services for benefits, medical care, education and addiction treatment.

"That building's been vacant for the last 10 years since Superstorm Sandy and just sat as an eyesore and in no way reflected the community that was around it," Nassau County Legis. Patrick Mullaney said. "This veterans village is going to be a perfect representation of the pride and patriotism that Island Park has and the surrounding communities."

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.