Hempstead Town Supervisor Richard V. Guardino, Jr. has been in the forefront of creative efforts to upgrade and revitalize downtown business communities so that they might thrive again. Such efforts are good for businesses, but they also greatly benefit the entire community. Nothing can drive down the price of homes faster than a deteriorating and vacant business district.

The Town of Hempstead effort, launched 15 years ago in Inwood, Roosevelt and Elmont, has now grown to include Bellmore, Oceanside, East Meadow, North Valley Stream, Merrick, Baldwin and Franklin Square. Future programs will reach Wantagh and Levittown.

One of the most successful efforts, through Hempstead's Neighborhood Business Improvement Partnership, has been the Bellmore Village project. Encompassing some five blocks on Bedford Avenue, the area ceased being a vital neighborhood hub in the early 1980s. Now, more than 30 stores have participated in Hempstead Town's facade improvement program. As a result those 30 stores have changed from vacancy after vacancy into an esthetically pleasing and architecturally cohesive, heavily-utilized shopping area with nearly 100 percent of the stores occupied. The Bellmore Village project has also included decorative street lighting and wrought-iron benches.

Similar stories can be recounted for the other communities previously mentioned. Merrick, however, takes special mention. In that community, a partnership has been forged between the Town of Hempstead, the Merrick Chamber of Commerce, the Long Island Railroad and the State of New York to upgrade the area contiguous to the LIRR's Merrick Station. With assistance by New York Senate Deputy Majority Leader Dean Skelos and Senator Charles Fuschillo, Jr., the Merrick Revitalization Program, while currently in the planning stage, will, when fully implemented, beautify the area, improve traffic patterns and lure shoppers back to the area.

Supervisor Guardino deserves commendation for the special and creative efforts he has made in helping all of this happen. If you would like to find out whether these programs can be extended to your community, drop him a line at Town of Hempstead, One Washington Street, Hempstead, New York 11550.

Hempstead has not been alone in efforts to revitalize downtown communities. Islip's Supervisor Peter McGowan has taken the leadership to bring back Bay Shore's Main Street by replacing, in cooperation with the Long Island Housing Partnership, dilapidated housing on Smith Street. In Babylon, Supervisor Richard Schaeffer has made significant and positive changes to the "corners" -- once one of the most drug-infested communities on Long Island.

Partnerships do work. My hat is off to Supervisors Guardino, McGowan and Schaeffer.