Hicksville downtown revitalization back on track with revised set of $8.7M in projects

The long-stalled Hicksville downtown revitalization plan is beginning to move again after Oyster Bay and New York State officials agreed upon a revised set of projects.

The state will provide $8.7 million in grant money to pay for infrastructure improvements and open-space projects around the Hicksville Long Island Rail Road station. Town Supervisor Joseph Saladino said Monday that construction is expected to begin in the summer.

The changed plan “keeps in line with the spirit of the DRI [Downtown Revitalization Initiative] award,” Saladino said in an interview.

“We are thrilled that these have been approved after much input from the public and quite a bit of community input to this,” Saladino said. “We think that these projects are going to be phenomenal in redesigning the experience in downtown Hicksville.”

The revised plan would expand John F. Kennedy Memorial Park into parking spaces directly to the south and create a Festival Plaza nearby by adding plantings and seating to land being used as surface parking. Both were in the original plan but had been conceived of as being larger open spaces.

Saladino said these spaces would connect commuters to Hicksville’s downtown and will be used for public events such as concerts and holiday festivals.

The original plans, designed under a state grant, re-imagined the area around the Hicksville train station by moving street-level parking into parking garages and converting the parking lots into open space and an entrance into the station. Officials from the town and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority — which was to build some of the parking spaces — failed to reach an agreement and last year the town submitted a revised plan to the state that did not include the parking garages.

Also included in the revised plan is the “Underline,” a redesign of the underside of the elevated train track to colorful LED lighting as well as downtown streetscape improvements.

Saladino said eight firms responded to a request for proposals issued in September for engineering firms to provide design, bidding and construction inspection services on the projects. After the town selects the firms, the public will have the opportunity to weigh in on the new designs, Saladino said.

The New York State Department of State, which runs the grant program, said in a statement Monday that the community will benefit from the projects in the revised plan.  

“With a focus on energizing this area more quickly, and in ways that maintain the community’s focus on supporting new mixed-use development that includes a DRI-funded project, project funds will be dedicated to open space and pedestrian connections projects that were included and recommended as part of the Hicksville DRI Strategic Investment Plan,” the department said in a statement.

At its Oct. 25 meeting, the Oyster Bay Town Board authorized Saladino to enter into contracts with the state for the revised projects that had been submitted last year.

“It’s good to see that the state is unlocking some of the dollars they promised for the DRI,” Eric Alexander, director of Vision Long Island, an organization that promotes “smart growth” on Long Island, said Monday.