I hope you will be able to publish this prior to the Zoning Board of Appeals' continued hearing on March 3.

Thank you for your newspaper's excellent coverage of this most important matter.

Hopefully, my statement will further serve to inform the public and encourage them to voice their concerns, both in writing and by attending and signing up to speak at the March 3 hearing at 3 p.m.

Statement presented at the Town of Hempstead Zoning Board of Appeals Public Hearing on Feb. 4:

My name is Dorothy Episcopia. I am past president of the Eastern Property Owners' Association of Garden City, and was the chairperson of former Mayor John McGowan's committee to monitor development outside of the Village.

I was here as president of our Property Owners' Association when the Town Council held a Public Hearing in March 1989, the main subject of which was the adoption of the .4 FAR for certain sections of the Building Zone Ordinance.

As president of the Eastern Property Owners' Association of Garden City, I spoke in support of the Town Council's move to adopt the .4 FAR because there had been no FAR to govern the size of buildings in certain zones within the HUB, which is to the immediate east of our Village.

I have the transcript of the hearing, which, ten years later, is most interesting. Why? Because it contains statements from our elected officials, some of whom are still in office, and the testimony of several of the Town's commissioners and consultants, who presented the case for adopting the .4 Floor Area Ratio.

No one -- absolutely no one -- who spoke in favor of the .4 FAR spoke against development. Advocates of the .4 FAR, including me, spoke only in favor of controlled development.

[Ref. pg. 4, lines 13-21]: Mr. Joseph Mondello: "Maintaining the delicate balance that exists between our trying economical and fragile environment is one of the foremost priorities of this Town Board... if our children and their children are to enjoy the same quality of life with which we have been blessed, it is imperative that our Town's future growth must be closely governmentally controlled." That was in 1989.

[Ref. pg. 16-19]: Commissioner Davis of the Town's Department of Water advocated adoption of the .4 FAR because controlling development provides at least one way to preserve groundwater resources. He cited serious concerns about future availability of groundwater, particularly with regard to the Roosevelt Field Water District, and concluded by stating that the adoption of the .4 FAR "...would provide in part for the preservation of this groundwater resource. ...The groundwater resource is now recognized as not being limitless and it must be used in such a fashion that it will ensure to all its continued availability." That was also in 1989.

[Ref. pg. 20-25]: James Watts, a traffic consultant with Wilbur Smith Associates, examined the increase in traffic generated by specific improved sites and potential development also in the Stewart Avenue corridor, including the intersection with the Roosevelt Field Mall access drive. The study quantified and evaluated the impacts on traffic from existing and future development, making it clear that at certain times of the day, the major intersections along Stewart Avenue were so congested that they were already rated at an "F" level. With reference to possible mitigation projects, he stated, "...there is very little, if any, opportunity to expand traffic capacity at the Stewart Avenue corridor without substantial land acquisition, construction costs and potentially adverse environmental impact. ...The anticipated traffic demands from proposed development far exceeds the volumes that would produce a tolerable service on the roadway." Again, that was in 1989.

[Ref. pg. 26-27]: Mr. John Follis, Jr., deputy director of the Nassau County Planning Commission, announced the Commission's recommendation to adopt the .4 FAR as a means to control development. He reported that studies showed that a .4 FAR would reduce untold demands on the infrastucture.

That was in 1989, years before the expansion at Fortunoff's Source, the advent of the Price Club and big box stores on Old Country Road, the birth of the Home Depot and big box stores at the Roosevelt Raceway site, the 1995 mega expansion of the Roosevelt Field Shopping Center, the redevelopment of certain properties along the Stewart Avenue corridor, and the addition of some large office buildings throughout the area.

This is 1999. The County government touts visions of developing the "Nassau County HUB" into the "City of Nassau." The Town grants building permits and considers applications for variances and special exceptions for development of individual properties within the "HUB." Yet, no one, not even the Nassau County Planning Commission, has clearly determined what the impact would be if innumerable undeveloped parcels within the "HUB" were all developed, even if only to the as-of-right .4 FAR.

In 1989, the Town Council heralded their decision to adopt the .4 FAR as a "bold measure" enabling the Town, for the first time, to govern the size of buildings in certain zones within the "HUB." However, they reserved the Town's right to grant "special exceptions" to applicants seeking permission to develop their commercial properties in excess of the allowable .4 FAR. Astonishingly, they did not include a cap on the total FAR to which a property could be developed nor did they limit the number of special exceptions that could be granted to a single applicant.

Even with the .4 FAR to which a developer can build as of right, with the seemingly endless opportunity to repeatedly apply for permission to exceed the .4 FAR, and permission being granted, and with no maximum FAR, the 1989 amendments to the Zoning Code become ineffective.

In terms of the 1989 amendments to the Town Zoning Code, you can easily grant the Roosevelt Field's application. While your decisions are goverend by the Zoning Ordinance, you also have a duty to seriously consider quality of life issues in accordance with Sec. 267 (2) of the Town Code, which is focused on protecting public good.

The Environmental Assessment Form, prepared by the applicant and the Town, with this Board as the lead agency, states that the addition of another 150,000 square foot department store, more shops, and an expanded parking garage at the Roosevelt Field Shopping Center will have no impact on traffic, transportation and the environment. We think otherwise, not to mention the accelerated siphoning effect that this will have on all of the "main street" downtown business districts throughout the surrounding area.

In 1989 there were serious concerns about the Roosevelt Field Water District and the future of the groundwater source. In 1999, has someone found more water? Has someone made sure the contaminants in the area have totally disappeared?

The traffic studies produced by the applicant are site specific, limited to the Roosevelt Field Mall, as if it were an island unto itself.

The owners of Roosevelt Field are obviously confident that you will grant them their application. As is their right, they have chosen to fence in the site where they want to expand, identify it with signage marked "Construction Area," and commence expensive site preparation before the public was even heard.

We look to you to remember your vested responsibilities. Your decision on this application for the unnecessary further expansion of Roosevelt Field, will set a precedent for any other similar application. Therefore, only this Board has the power to determine the future health of the heart of Nassau County.

The heart of Nassau County is already acutely congested. Please keep it from dying of congestive heart failure.