I attended Governor Cuomo’s speech to the Long Island Association, where he laid out his vision for transforming Long Island’s infrastructure and economy. His vision includes the 9.8-mile Third Track from Floral Park to Hicksville, a possible tunnel under the [Long Island] Sound, and enhancements to regional airports including international flights to MacArthur Airport, as well as investing in the research institutions and the innovative economy that are essential to a better future for the region.
I wholeheartedly endorse the governor’s vision. It offers a dynamic approach to economic development and a remarkable breadth of commitment to the region. The Third Track, in particular, is an initiative that the Rauch Foundation has strongly supported for years, based on the objective data that the Long Island Index, an initiative of the Rauch Foundation, has generated. According to the Index, by 2035, 10 years after the Third Track’s completion, the impacts would be: 14,000 new jobs; $5.6 billion in additional gross regional product; $3.0 billion in additional personal income, and 35,400 new residents to Long Island, 39 percent of whom would be 25 to 44 years old.
Cuomo’s vision is an exciting one that offers a dynamic future for Long Island. I urge Long Islanders to seize the momentum that his vision conveys and work together to achieve its extraordinary potential.
Nancy Rauch Douzinas,
president of the Rauch Foundation
