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Huntington Town board member Joan Cergol, above, co-sponsored legislation to legalized basement...

Huntington Town board member Joan Cergol, above, co-sponsored legislation to legalized basement apartments and detached garages, but it failed to garner enough support. Credit: Newsday/Steve Pfost

Affordable housing advocates in Huntington on Wednesday voiced concerns after a town proposal aimed at boosting housing supply failed to garner support from the board, saying it's now up to the governor.

The town resolution sought to legalize basement apartments and detached garages, known as accessory dwelling units, in single-family homes. The proposal will not come up for a vote, town board member Joan Cergol said Tuesday, after board members Dave Bennardo and Sal Ferro withdrew their support. Cergol co-sponsored the measure with Bennardo.

Hunter Gross, president of the Huntington Township Housing Coalition, said the board’s lack of support is disappointing.

“It’s clear town boards, like the Town of Huntington, are making it really hard to pass any type of housing legislation,” Gross said Wednesday. “So I’m hoping the governor can create a plan and get the support of the State Legislature to tackle the housing crisis, because if we can’t do it locally and people are desperate for help, [we are] not sure where else to turn.”

Gross said his group will be reaching out to Gov. Kathy Hochul's office to offer support to ensure her housing legislation is successful at the state level next session. 

Hochul in July announced a rebooted plan to provide $650 million to local governments, including those on Long Island, that seek to expand housing to combat the affordability crisis. Her earlier proposal was rejected by the State Legislature this year amid opposition by some local governments, including some officials on Long Island.

“It’s so discouraging. I’ve seen how people live,” Cergol said. “I know how hard it is, and I know this would have been a good and solid, but very small solution, to address housing affordability and opportunity on Long Island.”

The legislation's approval would have required three votes from the five-member board.

At a contentious and crowded public hearing on June 13, advocates of the plan said legislation would provide safe, decent and affordable housing, but opponents cited concerns, including impact on traffic and the environment, lack of code enforcement and the stress that more people moving into town might place on public services. 

Both Bennardo and Ferro said they reconsidered their support after hearing from the community.

“I miscalculated the genuine concern about traffic and water quality,” Bennardo said Tuesday.

Town Supervisor Ed Smyth on Tuesday said comments at the June hearing made it clear to him there was "very little appetite for basement apartments." 

Basement apartments were legal in Huntington until 2019. They were later banned as part of a larger effort to revise the town's accessory dwelling unit code. The town code reduced the size of lots allowed for accessory dwellings from 7,000 to 5,000 square feet. As part of the change, basement apartments were eliminated, town officials said.

Town code permits accessory apartments in single-family homes.

Pilar Moya-Mancera, executive director of Greenlawn-based Housing Help, a housing advocacy group, said the proposal would have benefited seniors, veterans, young people, the disabled and people of color. It also would have kept first responders, tenants, and homeowners safer, she said, adding she is in contact with the governor's Long Island representatives weekly about housing issues on Long Island. 

The failed Huntington measure, Moya-Mancera said, illustrates why it’s necessary for the state step in.

“Because at the local level we have not been able to accomplish the goal of creating more affordable housing and this is the reason why we need local zoning changes created by the state,” she said.

Justin Henry, deputy communications director for the governor's office, said in an email, "Hochul remains committed to making housing more affordable for New Yorkers, and will continue trying to work with the Legislature on solutions that tackle New York’s housing crisis and make the state more affordable and more livable for all.”

Affordable housing advocates in Huntington on Wednesday voiced concerns after a town proposal aimed at boosting housing supply failed to garner support from the board, saying it's now up to the governor.

The town resolution sought to legalize basement apartments and detached garages, known as accessory dwelling units, in single-family homes. The proposal will not come up for a vote, town board member Joan Cergol said Tuesday, after board members Dave Bennardo and Sal Ferro withdrew their support. Cergol co-sponsored the measure with Bennardo.

Hunter Gross, president of the Huntington Township Housing Coalition, said the board’s lack of support is disappointing.

“It’s clear town boards, like the Town of Huntington, are making it really hard to pass any type of housing legislation,” Gross said Wednesday. “So I’m hoping the governor can create a plan and get the support of the State Legislature to tackle the housing crisis, because if we can’t do it locally and people are desperate for help, [we are] not sure where else to turn.”

Gross said his group will be reaching out to Gov. Kathy Hochul's office to offer support to ensure her housing legislation is successful at the state level next session. 

Hochul in July announced a rebooted plan to provide $650 million to local governments, including those on Long Island, that seek to expand housing to combat the affordability crisis. Her earlier proposal was rejected by the State Legislature this year amid opposition by some local governments, including some officials on Long Island.

“It’s so discouraging. I’ve seen how people live,” Cergol said. “I know how hard it is, and I know this would have been a good and solid, but very small solution, to address housing affordability and opportunity on Long Island.”

The legislation's approval would have required three votes from the five-member board.

At a contentious and crowded public hearing on June 13, advocates of the plan said legislation would provide safe, decent and affordable housing, but opponents cited concerns, including impact on traffic and the environment, lack of code enforcement and the stress that more people moving into town might place on public services. 

Both Bennardo and Ferro said they reconsidered their support after hearing from the community.

“I miscalculated the genuine concern about traffic and water quality,” Bennardo said Tuesday.

Town Supervisor Ed Smyth on Tuesday said comments at the June hearing made it clear to him there was "very little appetite for basement apartments." 

Basement apartments were legal in Huntington until 2019. They were later banned as part of a larger effort to revise the town's accessory dwelling unit code. The town code reduced the size of lots allowed for accessory dwellings from 7,000 to 5,000 square feet. As part of the change, basement apartments were eliminated, town officials said.

Town code permits accessory apartments in single-family homes.

Pilar Moya-Mancera, executive director of Greenlawn-based Housing Help, a housing advocacy group, said the proposal would have benefited seniors, veterans, young people, the disabled and people of color. It also would have kept first responders, tenants, and homeowners safer, she said, adding she is in contact with the governor's Long Island representatives weekly about housing issues on Long Island. 

The failed Huntington measure, Moya-Mancera said, illustrates why it’s necessary for the state step in.

“Because at the local level we have not been able to accomplish the goal of creating more affordable housing and this is the reason why we need local zoning changes created by the state,” she said.

Justin Henry, deputy communications director for the governor's office, said in an email, "Hochul remains committed to making housing more affordable for New Yorkers, and will continue trying to work with the Legislature on solutions that tackle New York’s housing crisis and make the state more affordable and more livable for all.”

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