To the Plainview Community,

The county-owned property in Plainview, located on Round Swamp Road and Old Country Road, is once again in the news. This land has been tagged for sale by the county for over seven years, and the most recent agreement to sell the parcel has come from Charles Wang, chief executive officer of Computer Associates.

While this sale and its price tag of $23.05 million is certainly good news for the Plainview-Old Bethpage School district and the County of Nassau, I have a host of questions and concerns about the tentative sale.

This current proposal differs from others in the past because it now involves the entire 144 acres of land, not the 45.9 acres the county originally had marked for sale.

In addition, it has recently come to my attention that other bids received by the county were lower in price because they were based on the original 45.9 acres of office-zoned property. Was the playing field level for all bids?

According to the county's real estate department, the letter of intent confirming Mr. Wang's purchase was signed, under the condition that the property is sold in "as is" condition, subject to all existing leases, zoning, restrictions, and covenants. Mr. Wang has stated that he is purchasing the land for investment purposes. But a recent Newsday article ("Wang is Likely to Develop Recent Buy, March 1, 1999") states otherwise:

"A letter of intent signed last month by Wang and county officials requires Nassau to make an effort to persuade Oyster Bay officials to increase floor-to-area ratio of the site by as much as possible, which would enable Wang to build a larger building than allowed under current zone."

The current agreement reached on the zoning of this property at the town level was the result of many years of community meetings that encompassed the concerns of the community, while still leaving the office-zoned acreage an attractive money-making investment. I will remain ever-vigilant in seeing that the original agreement is not modified.

Some of my concerns include:

What guarantees will be written into the contract requiring that the recreation/forever green open space (approximately 40 acres) will always remain as such?

Why would Mr. Wang want to purchase the full 144 acres knowing that 40 of them must remain as open space, per covenants running with the land?

Who, once the county is out of the picture, will maintain this open recreational space?

With regard to the 31 acres of land which houses numerous important county facilities, what would the rental costs be once the rent-free grace period of three - five years ends?

What are Mr. Wang's plans for the property if, in fact, he is purchasing it in his own name and not in the name of Computer Associates? This is extremely important to the surrounding residents.

What guarantees would the community have that any present restrictions regarding open space on the property would apply to subsequent purchasers if Mr. Wang's future plans involve selling the property?

Are any clauses in this contract going to render the land tax exempt for any period of time? If so, will this be for all taxes or just the county portion of taxes?

I have also submitted this list of questions to various Nassau County officials and will be keeping a watchful eye on this situation. If the tentative sale proceeds to a contract signing, I will hold a county community forum with representatives of Mr. Wang and Plainview residents so that everyone's questions can be answered.

The county's projected $200 million deficit is of grave concern to me and I'm sure all residents would like to see that number reduced, with the influx of $23.05 million, but I must insist that the sale not be carried out at the expense of the community.

Judith Jacobs
Nassau County Legislator, 16th District