Nearly 200 residents, officials and business persons came out for the North Hempstead Business and Tourism Development Corporation’s (BTDC) Downtown Revitalization Conference on June 6 at the Harbor Links Club House in Port Washington.
Speakers covered a multitude of downtown revitalization topics, such as building grassroots momentum, developing a downtown plan, streetscape improvements, the arts as a downtown anchor and financing downtown efforts.
The BTDC, under the leadership of Executive Director Kim Kaiman, co-hosted the program with the National Center for Suburban Studies (NCSS) at Hofstra University, under the leadership of Executive Dean Lawrence Levy, who served as the moderator.
“I believe that this conference gave attendees the opportunity to hear and learn from some individuals who were able to share their wealth of knowledge and hands-on experience in making Downtown Revitalization a reality,” said Bosworth. “I’d like to thank our Town’s BTDC and Hofstra’s National Center for Suburban Studies for putting together such a worthwhile event.”
“The conference was a great way for all downtown revitalization stakeholders to come together and envision the possibilities,” said Kaman. “There’s no one-size-fits all answer which is why it’s important to establish partnerships between the community, their local municipality, and the private sector.”
The event included an extensive list of speakers with decades of experience in economic development, who covered a multitude of downtown revitalization topics, such as building grassroots momentum, developing a downtown plan, streetscape improvements, the arts as a downtown anchor and financing downtown efforts.
The morning keynote address was delivered by Vanessa Pugh, Deputy Commissioner, Suffolk County Office of Economic Development, who has worked on successful revitalization projects in New Cassel in North Hempstead and Wyandanch in the Town of Babylon.
The keynote speaker was Kevin Law, President and CEO of the Long Island Association. In 2011, Law was appointed by Governor Andrew Cuomo as Co-Chair of the Long Island Regional Economic Development Council (LIREDC), a board that leads economic development initiatives in the region. Law will spoke on “downtown” funding successes in areas such as Wyandanch, Glen Cove and Huntington.
Michael Puntillo, Jr., President and Principal, Jobco Realty & Construction, a 64-year-old Great Neck-based firm, also spoke about the ongoing Glen Cove Piazza mixed-use development project.
For more information about the BTDC, please call 311.
