Village Residents Party

Brookville, Long Island, New York

The Village Residents Party, founded in 1992, serves Brookville, Upper Brookville, Old Brookville and part of Old Westbury. The VRP is a privately-funded Political Action Committee (PAC) that is registered with the State of New York.

The Village Residents Party has always considered the institutions that are located within our villages to be some of the key factors in determining the quality of life in our area. When they are well run and given proper oversight, they can be great assets. When that is not the case, they can be great liabilities. Thus, we have devoted much of our energies to monitoring the process of local government oversight of these institutions. When the local governments do not adequately carry out their responsibilities, we inform you, the voting residents, of our findings and our recommendations. Our recommendations revolve around political actions that we ask you, the voters, to take.

Post College / Long Island University

One of our primary concerns, for many years, has been Post/LIU's unquenchable thirst for the unbridled construction and development of its several-hundred acre campus. Whether it is an enclosed horseback riding area, a hockey arena, a gymnasium or some other project, Post/LIU seems to be constantly in line to get one project after another through the village-level permit process. We are not flatly opposed to any and all construction at Post/LIU; what we oppose is the excessive over-development of its campus in ways that do not relate to Post/LIU's ostensible, academic functions. You will recall that many of our past complaints centered around detrimental externalities (neighborhood effects), breached agreements, and discrepancies in Post/LIU's own statements and assurances. Nevertheless, they remain unwilling to enter into good faith negotiations with community organizations.

We have proposed the formation of a joint committee that would include representatives from Post/LIU and the various community-based organizations. However, Dr. Steinberg continues to resist our call for the formation of any community relations group. Perhaps a few more calls, letters and faxes from the community could change his mind.

This campus is partly in Old Westbury and partly in Brookville. Old Westbury has been fairly stringent in its application of local zoning ordinances. Brookville has been fairly lax. Most of Post/LIU's proposals for construction have been in the Incorporated Village of Brookville (coincidence?). Of course, all of our villages are affected by the activities and expansion plans of Post/LIU. We maintain an archive of correspondence that relates to these projects.

LIU maintains a community relations page on its web site. It contains very little information that would be of any use in the present context. Nonetheless, you may want to make a note of it for future reference.

Underhill property

As you may have noticed in all of the newspaper articles and direct mailings, this issue is primarily a political one. In most discussions of this issue, some minor concessions are made to the legalities of the court case, but, by and large, the final decisions will be made (or at least, implemented) by elected officials in response to constituent pressures. This is an area where an organization like the VRP (a registered political action committee) can have its greatest impact. When you contact town-level officials, be sure to mention the VRP to them. Tell them that you support the VRP. Tell them that when election time arrives, you will give very serious consideration to the VRP's recommendations regarding your vote and your financial support for an insurgent candidate, should the incumbents fail to give adequate consideration to the views of their constituents. They know that our villages are not very populous, but your financial support of their opponents is something that they would fear more than just losing a few hundred votes.

Village Governments

The Boards of Trustees of the Incorporated Villages generally meet once per month, except for the summer months. You can call or write the Village Clerk of your village for the exact date, time and location of the next meeting. Village Board meetings are free and open to the public. The Village Residents Party urges all residents to attend as often as possible.

* Brookville

18 Horse Hill Road, Brookville, New York 11545
626-1792
626-0973

We maintain an archive of notes that were taken at meetings of the Board of Trustees of the Incorporated Village of Brookville. The Board of Trustees normally meets every month. Times and locations are available from the Village Clerk or from the Village of Brookville web site. These meetings are open to the public.

* Old Brookville

201 McCouns Lane, Old Brookville, New York 11545
671-4664
671-4725 (fax)

* Upper Brookville

Planting Fields Road, Upper Brookville, New York 11771
624-7715

* Old Westbury

1 Store Hill Road, Old Westbury, New York 11568
626-0800

Note: the Village Residents Party serves only the northern portion of Old Westbury, which is located near Post College, New York Institute of Technology and the AHRC.

Please feel free to share your views and concerns with us. We can be reached by E-mail at: mjdowden@panix.com Residents of the four villages (above) will have received substantial correspondence from us that included other contact information, such as phone numbers and postal addresses. Please use whatever means suits you best.

address inquiries to mjdowden@panix.com