Attitudes have changed on housing, development
Developments such as the Huntington Quadrangle in Melville, left, and in downtown Kings Park were issues in the election. Credit: Howard Schnapp, Heather Walsh
As the overhyped issues fade away after Election Day, another quieter, running theme resonates, underscoring just how local local races can get.
Again and again, at town halls, on social media and in meet the candidate nights, housing and zoning emerged as the most pressing issue in 2025. Remarkably, the tone, emphasis and perspectives have noticeably shifted.
In years past, candidates would often trip over themselves to see who could embrace the Not in My Backyard moniker more. The notion that a candidate — especially an incumbent — would advocate for specific housing or other economic development plans was rare — and even rarer that such plans would be realized.
Now, with the cost of housing and affordability taking center stage, the need for a growing tax base to meet local government’s increasing expenses, and shrinking school enrollment, those attitudes have changed. It’s certainly not true everywhere — but in spots across the Island, especially in Suffolk County, an increasing number of elected officials and even some candidates new to the fray have appropriately embraced development opportunities as a way to hold the line on taxes and increase an area’s housing stock. And in many cases voters, also appropriately, are no longer rejecting that message.
That’s most noticeable in places like Smithtown, where incumbent Edward Wehrheim has spent two terms slowly moving a once-intransigent town toward a future where growth and change aren’t bad words. This year, Wehrheim beat Legis. Rob Trotta in an intense Republican primary that became a referendum on Kings Park redevelopment. Democrats mounted a write-in campaign for Trotta in the general election, but there were only about 1,700 write-ins, to Wehrheim’s 12,000 votes.
Like Wehrheim, Huntington Supervisor Ed Smyth first won a Republican primary mostly focused on Smyth’s development efforts, this time in Melville, where he championed an overlay district that could bring housing and retail to a reimagined Huntington Quadrangle. In the general, Democrat Cooper Macco didn’t oppose those efforts, instead seeking a more comprehensive approach.
In Riverhead, too, Supervisor Timothy Hubbard isn’t an apologist for his support for revitalizing the downtown, building housing and developing Enterprise Park at Calverton, or EPCAL. And while his challenger, Jerome Halpin, differed around the edges, particularly on height limits, he didn’t push back against the broader mission. With the race now separated by just 21 votes, it’s clear there was no significant backlash to growth.
Of course, even now, such acceptance of new development opportunities is far from universal. Take Islip, where many residents oppose plans to build anything but a limited number of single family homes at the former Island Hills golf course in Sayville and where plans for the southern side of the Ronkonkoma Hub remain unclear. Incumbent legislators who won reelection and newcomer DawnMarie Kuhn, who will join the town board next year, didn’t outwardly buck that trend, choosing to voice concern and hesitation over full-throated support for housing and other development.
In Nassau County, too, development remains more difficult in some spots, especially with land more scarce. Yet even there, there are incumbents and newcomers alike who’ve applauded downtown revitalization efforts and some specific housing opportunities.
There is one swath of Nassau land where there’s seemingly universal agreement to build . . . something. But when it comes to the asphalt surrounding Nassau Coliseum, reelected County Executive Bruce Blakeman and newly elected Hempstead Supervisor John Ferretti Jr. will have their own uphill battles. No hype is needed there — but even a solid plan, never mind an actual groundbreaking, would be a good start.
Columnist Randi F. Marshall’s opinions are her own.
Randi Marshall is a member of the Newsday editorial board.
