Nassau County Executive Thomas R. Suozzi held an Economic Development Tour and Meeting for West Hempstead, Garden City South and Franklin Square on Wednesday, Aug. 20.

The tour began at 2 p.m. at West Hempstead High School. The public meeting was held at 7 p.m. For the first time in many years, Nassau County residents are permitted a hand in shaping the future of their community with a discussion on the community's vision for economic development.

During the tour and meeting, County Executive Suozzi discussed a number of local concerns with residents and community officials. The discussion included creating a long and short-term plan to clean up and maintain Hall's Pond Park, turning vacant parcels around the area into affordable senior housing, and beautifying the area on and around Hempstead Avenue.

"West Hempstead, Garden City South and Franklin Square are great communities," County Executive Suozzi said. "We want take care of these communities so that residents can enjoy them for years to come. I am very pleased that, as we rebuild Nassau County government by eliminating fraud, waste and abuse, we now can also address neighborhood issues that impact on our suburban quality of life."

To combat the problems individual communities face as well as to further add to the benefits of living in each community, the county has drafted an Economic Development Plan for Nassau that outlines broad goals for the future development of the County. The entire plan can be downloaded from the Nassau County Economic Development website at www.nassaucountynydevelopment.org. The plan divides the County into 35 Economic Development Areas, allowing it to work with each community to create a vision based on what you would like to see in your neighborhood.

With the support of the three town supervisors and our local mayors and with input from the communities, the county will develop a detailed plan for the future of each community that will be incorporated into the Nassau County Master Plan. This plan will then be used to encourage the development residents want in your neighborhood and discourage development residents do not want.

For further information about these community meetings visit the website above or call (516) 571-6000.