Last Thursday at Brookhaven Town Hall in Farmingville, a well-attended public meeting of the ongoing Neighborhood Road redevelopment plan drew the favor of the hamlet of Mastic Beach.
For Supervisor Dan Panico (R-Center Moriches), it’s a mission to not only deliver for residents, but to revitalize his hometown. Last November, Panico estimated that a ground-breaking would be in store for early 2026, with hopes to see the project completed by December 2027.
The support for the project has been palpable since it was first publicly shopped a couple years ago. In December 2024, the Town Board adopted a Positive Declaration for a Draft Generic Environmental Impact Statement (DGEIS). The public scoping period ended in March of this year.
The plan involves an overhaul of downtown Mastic Beach to make for a classic walkable downtown. Mixed-use zoning, road reworks, a village green – that prominently displays the lighthouse fixed on the median at Neighborhood Road and Commack Road – and a flurry of new businesses are what Mastic Beach residents will revive their hamlet.
And the crowd at Town Hall last week seemed to largely agree.
The Studies
Before the public comment portion, a panel, which consisted of representatives of the developer Beechwood, land use planning firm Nelson Pope Voorhis, traffic engineers, and data analysts, presented the Town Board with its latest on the area.
Taylor Garner, a Project Manager with Nelson Pope Voorhis (NVP), said that the vision includes “townhomes, rental apartments, multi-family housing, condos, and residential above storefronts.” Housing types consist of different price points and ownership models. Streetscape improvements would also be a major facet of the project, with the intention of creating a more pedestrian-friendly community with diagonal parking and outdoor dining.
“This study involved extensive inventory of every property in the redevelopment area, looking at the condition of buildings, such as boarded windows and overgrown vegetation. It also included an analysis of code violations and crime data,” said Garner.
The redevelopment area is a triangular zone of about thirty-seven acres and 140 parcels. It begins just west of the split between Neighborhood and Commack and continues east to Doris Drive and northeast towards Commack Road. Victoria Place and Linden place bound the area to the south.
Garner said that the plan “meets the requirements of New York State law”, with the “overarching goal” being to “eliminate blight conditions identified” in the study. The surrounding community was taken into consideration to see how those residents would be affected by the prospective downtown being built within such close proximity.
Garner said that a new district within the Town Code’s eyes would be warranted for the area, as it would contain traditional elements of code with a “large emphasis” on aesthetics, interaction with the public realm, and its pedestrian-friendly features.
Six subdistricts are proposed for the at-large district.
- A neighborhood sub-district envisioned for townhouses and as a buffer between the downtown and surrounding residential areas.
- The Main Street sub-district, which is proposed for Neighborhood Road and a “traditional” downtown with mixed-use.
- The Gateway-mixed-use sub-district is proposed for the western entrance to downtown from William Floyd Parkway.
- The mixed-use sub-district would function similarly to the Gateway district, but would allow for slightly increased building height. This would serve the eastern entrance to downtown from W Riviera Drive. No buildings throughout the area are to exceed the height of the existing ambulance company. Maximum height is fifty feet, with most sub-districts being capped at thirty-five feet.
- The civic sub-district would include the existing library and ambulance company, along with its surrounding properties.
- The park district has no proposed construction, but would be used for community space.
Brianna Sadowski, Project Manager and Senior Environmental Planner with NVP, shared the DGEIS approved by the Town Board on July 17, 2025. Multiple public hearings led to a State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) Study. The public comment period on the project began that evening at Town Hall and remains open through close of business on September 29.
The DGEIS consisted of evaluations of the adoption and implementation of the urban renewal plan, the land use plan, zoning map modifications, and the adoption of zoning code amendments. The SEQRA evaluated the potential impacts of these changes and the consistent increased density. The end goal is to produce the maximum potential feasible development. New York State law requires that the study use the maximum possible density under the plan as a benchmark, but the likelihood is that the total number of residential units will be less than that. Supervisor Panico mentioned “online” reports of about 600-700 units as the maximum feasible.
The conceptual plan takes in about 134,000 square feet of commercial space, including retail and restaurants, along with 550 apartment units along the eastern and western ends of the area. Additionally, seventy-eight townhomes are proposed along the north side of the area. On the southwestern side of the area, about 16,000 square feet is designated for civic or community space.
Parking will be supported by surface spaces, street parking, and/or garages, with a garage designed to be subdued and not obvious.
The traffic study was conducted during peak weekday hours and the Saturday midday peak, along with peak school traffic and peak summer beach traffic to capture the worst traffic conditions. Fourteen intersections were analyzed. Traffic overhauls consist of streamlining flow down Neighborhood Road, widened sidewalks, and streetscape improvements.
Councilwoman Karen Dunne Kesnig (R-Manorville) (pictured above), who represented Mastic Beach in the Sixth Council District, asked for clarification on the traffic study results, citing residents’ persistent concerns about congestion on the Tri-Hamlet Peninsula.
“By far the biggest objection has been to the traffic concerns,” said Dunne Kesnig.
Supervisor Panico (pictured below) says much of the traffic consternation is due to the State’s and MTA’s inactions on at-grade rail crossings that run parallel to Montauk Highway.
“The State of New York, if they play an active role, can help the people of Mastic, Mastic Beach, and Shirley, because both the State Department of Transportation (DOT) and MTA commissioners are appointed by the governor,” said Panico. “This Town Board has appealed year after year for more at-grade crossings.”
Panico says that the DOT and MTA recommended overpasses and underpasses, which Panico said would be “one of the most ridiculous and biggest wastes of municipal money.”
Community Comments
Many spoke favorably of the project, although the biggest common denominator for doubt was the ramifications of traffic on the peninsula. Others have technical questions as far as services and safety, while some were more outwardly opposed to the project. Overall, the tone was receptive and mostly approving of the project thus far.
“I’d like to see what we have here, what’s been in the community for many years, kept there, because that’s important to us,” said Robert Miller. “When we saw the proposal before, we didn’t agree. We hope that Main Street is redeveloped with this plan. This is a wonderful project.”
“I’m more than happy that this project is going to proceed; it’s a little overdue,” said Joseph Ferraro, adding that he remembers the area when he was much younger and that it has turned into something “we’re not proud of right now.”
Ferraro said that police presence would be a necessity for the added commerce and traffic, and that he currently observes prostitutes outside Handy Pantry at 5:00a.m.
“That’s not going to attract new people to come in. It can’t take ten years to fix; it’s something that’s needed right now.”
Ferraro also asked what kinds of businesses are intended to be attracted, expressing resistance to marijuana shops and similar stores.
“The area is not zoned for adult-use cannabis sales since it’s zoned under light industrial. None of the properties are being zoned or could be zoned for cannabis or things of that nature,” said Panico. “With regard to police presence, the former [County] administration was always resistant to adding the police substation.” Panico said that former Brookhaven Town Supervisor and current County Executive Ed Romaine (R-Center Moriches) is in favor of the idea and that Beechwood has offered to build the substation into one of the buildings in consultation with the SCPD. However, it would come down to the police department for that to happen.
Panico said that the vision for businesses would be smaller restaurants and stores, but that’s “ultimately up to the market” when construction is finished. However, he said that the developer is not “going for dollar stores” or lower-end stores. The last-year dissolution of the Town Planning Board, Panico says, will help expedite applications to get the downtown online faster than is typical for government.
One resident, however, is not in favor of the project, mainly due to traffic concerns that he says is a product of “fifty years” of government failure.
“This is not about six blocks; it’s about the whole peninsula,” said the eighty-year resident of Mastic Beach. He proposed turning Somerset Avenue into a parkway, with another going through the former Links property in Shirley.
“We’re not cutting through the Patriot’s Preserve and building a through-street highway,” said Panico. “We worked very hard to get just over 100 acres of that property for the people of Mastic, Shirley, and Mastic Beach – a serene place that we have to monitor more and more now because it’s becoming more popular.”
“There’s going to be 2,000 to 3,000 more cars on Mastic Road,” said the resident, ultimately disapproving of the project.
Mastic Beach was actually once an incorporated village from August 2010 to November 2016. Financial problems and general disorganization resulted in its dissolution, but its former mayor, Maura Spery, spoke with “concerns about the viability” of the project. While she supports the project, the crime and quality of life have gotten worse.
“I’m so close to throwing in the towel and moving out east where the taxes are lower and the sex offenders, felons, and drug addicts seem to be at a minimum,” said Spery. “In the eighteen years I’ve worked to get Mastic Beach to realize its full potential, I have never seen it this bad.”
Spery added that she’s uncomfortable driving and biking down some roads in the hamlet.
“Who in their right mind would be looking to buy property with this going on?” asked Spery.“I believe the time has come for concrete legal action. Beechwood Properties, the Town, and the County should join with the residents to pursue an Article 78 [suit] against New York State for unlawfully steering felons, drug addicts, sex offenders, and other criminals here.”
Panico said that “success begets other success”, in that development will naturally see the tide turn.
Deputy Supervisor Neil Foley (R-Blue Point) (pictured below) said that he saw a similar model with Patchogue’s revitalization.
“I understand the complaints, but Northwell, Langone, and New York Cancer & Blood are all building brand-new buildings in Patchogue. New York Cancer & Blood is dying to build a facility in the Shirley-Mastic area,” said Foley. “Mastic is in that sweet spot that doesn’t have great healthcare. I agree with the Supervisor; if you build it and you people make money, they will come.”
The sewage treatment plant for the area is proposed for a six-acre property just off Baker Road. Panico said that the sewage treatment plant would hardly be visible by residents who already live near the slated area.
“The Forge River Sewer Treatment Plant only has 87,000 gallons of excess capacity after the calculations for phases one and two, and many people want to see the Montauk Highway corridor redeveloped,” said Panico, adding that engineering limits also preclude linkage to the Forge River plant.
“I believe that a project similar to this, maybe not as large in scope, will definitely help,” said a business owner, regarding the potential influx of customers. “I just want to make sure we are prepared and that we don’t get hit with traffic. Our emergency services can’t handle what we already have.”
Natasha Williams, a resident and Vice Chair for the Government Affairs Committee for the Long Island Board of Realtors (LIBOR), said that the proposed housing is supported by realtors.
“We know that improving the quality of life for all residents is not just good for business, but it’s building equity, but good for our families, our neighbors, and our friends,” said Williams. “Beechwood’s proposal for Mastic Beach lifts housing values for current homeowners and provides opportunities for those priced out by the severe housing crisis. Modernizing this infrastructure in and around Neighborhood Road will allow for desperately needed new housing opportunities, but also desirable storefront spaces that, quite honestly, every community rightly deserves.”
Frank Fuggarino, President of the Pattersquash Creek Civic Organization, said that “pulling together” is part of the “history of Mastic Beach.”
“We will never see the redevelopment of Neighborhood Road without the direction that we’re heading now, and I can’t thank each and every one of you [Town Board] for your support of Mastic Beach,” said Fuggarino. He added that the sewage treatment plant will be an “issue” as far as the appropriation of grant monies.
“My members want the Beechwood development to be successful,” said Fuggarino. “I think the business owners who gave up their commitment of their lives and money to Mastic Beach have to somehow receive broader support.”
Panico agreed that the foundational businesses should receive that support.
Eric Alexander, Director of Vision Long Island, called the project “very thorough.” He also said that while his organization supports it, the traffic problem is one that can be solved with “creative solutions.” He added that Panico “nailed it” as far as the MTA “not favoring” the needs of the peninsula.
“The Mastic Beach community is made up of hard-working folks who deserve this type of investment. They’ve been asking for it for years,” said Alexander.
Public comments on the proposal can be forwarded to James Tullo, Commissioner of Brookhaven’s Department of Planning, Environment, and Land Management (PELM), by mail to 1 Independence Hill, Farmingville NY 11738, or by email at seqra@brookhavenny.gov. Written comments will be accepted until September 29, 2025.
