The compelling reason to incorporate - what is it? To incorporate Hicksville, to turn the hamlet of Hicksville into a village with its own village government, I can't figure it out yet. The pros and cons are out there on incorporating into a village. Every Hicksville resident must spend time reading and questioning what happens when you incorporate because in the end you are either going to or not going to pay.

This is much more complicated than running a community association. The New York State Laws on Village Incorporation, Article 2, are a complex read. Fears are this will be nothing more than forming a bureaucracy with tin cup in hand and end up biting off more than we can chew. My taxes are high, will they go higher? Or, will my taxes be lower with the added village taxes minus certain town taxes if Hicksville incorporates? I love the pools; I like the garbage being picked up. Will these things change? Who will pay for the fire trucks? Who will pay to plow my street out in a major snowstorm? Are we going to pay for our own police force? Hopes are the benefits of residents having enhanced governmental services by incorporating Hicksville into a village. This would be a great achievement in Hicksville's history.

Is there a correlation between average household income or population growth and successful villages? Does the average household income and population of Hicksville residents measure up to incorporating a village? By incorporating into a village are we going to curtail, increase or control the future population growth of Hicksville residents with higher or lower average household incomes?

Last week I read about Costco building in Hicksville and the West John Street asphalt plants not being fined. Fined for what? What are the expert environmental opinion findings of the area? You have to fight fire with fire. I also read that the quality of life in Hicksville is terrible because of these things. Quality of life is subjective. My quality of life in Hicksville is wonderful - maybe yours isn't.

The Supreme Court overturned the town's decision on Costco, the Supreme Court would probably overturn the village's too. That's not enough of a compelling reason for me to say incorporate. Currently there is a lot of traffic in Hicksville during rush hours and weekends. I don't believe Costco would have a great influx of customers during rush hour, but it definitely would after those hours and on the weekends. On the other hand, worldwide, Costco sells billions of dollars of merchandise every year. Does anyone know how much money in sales tax revenue Costco brings in? Will this money pay for Hicksville's municipal needs?

The compelling reason is the secret to turn Hicksville into a village so let's welcome the revelation.

Deborah Foronda