(Published 2009-03-12 in Riverhead News Review)

In 1804, Timothy Dwight, the visiting president of Yale College, described Riverhead’s downtown as a “miserable hamlet that stands near the efflux of this river.” 205 years later nothing has changed.

 It wasn’t that long ago, when a miserable blighted area of midtown Manhattan known as Times Square was written off. We all know the story of that remarkable comeback. So why can’t we just follow that lesson plan? Is a downtown Riverhead revival ever going to be possible?

History shows the Times Square revival was a long one too. It started in 1981 with a NYS conceived $2.6 billion dollar plan that included tax abatement deals to government selected developers, huge office tower designs, grand merchandise markets, fancy hotels, and the restoration of historic theaters. But after years of planning, nothing ever materialized. Why? The commercial real estate market tanked with the 1987 stock market crash. Then the developers started dropping out like flies.

Starting to sound familiar?

So what finally revived Times Square? The revival started not because of this grandiose state sponsored plan. The revival started by fighting crime, smart zoning, and cutting taxes to companies willing to relocate there. This then allowed the free market to nourish. By the early 1990’s, billions in private-sector investment began pouring into Times Square. The lesson is that the revitalization would have cost much less if they would have just took this approach from the start.

So what is Riverhead to do?

Let’s start with Supervisor Cardinale. In his 2008 inaugural address, the supervisor told us that governing is about substance. Yet has any one of his ideas or plans ever materialized? After 5 years of his administration, is Riverhead better or worse off? From EPCAL and the downtown, to the landfill and Suffolk Theater, to being the sex offender dumping ground, all the way to the 911 dispatchers, and his seemingly intended dismantling of the Riverhead Police Department. If governing is about substance, then Mr. Cardinale is a failure. Nothing personal, just business. Mr. Cardinale has to go.

 How about the Riverhead Industrial Development Agency? Or the Economic Development Zone? What about the Community Development Department? All of them are staffed with good, well intentioned, and connected people. But if they are to be measured by substance, then all these boards and departments are failures too. Just like Mr. Cardinale, they too must go.

 So looking back on Riverheads town sponsored grandiose plans and the people trying to implement them; can there be any further proof that the Riverhead way, or the government way is the wrong way? Should we then continue to waste more time and more tax dollars on projects that most likely will never materialize?

 The town should spend the money wisely. On infrastructure projects like sewer expansions, the widening of West Main Street from the end of the LIE all the way to the downtown, an EPCAL rail spur, and once and for all create a direct access route to EPCAL from the LIE.

 Next, streamline the permit process. The layers and layers of governmental reviews and approvals needed and the time it takes to get them, simply waste huge amounts of taxpayer dollars. This process that the government created destroyed the development industry. The average person has no idea about any of this. Educate the public and streamline the process. Don’t fast track selected projects, streamline the whole process.

 Then let the free market flourish by up-zoning the downtown, allowing even greater density. Make it profitable to rebuild a decaying town. Aggressively offer tax abatements and tax cuts to corporations willing to relocate their headquarters here. Office towers don’t over burden schools, don’t increase sprawl, and don’t require bulldozing Pine Barrens or farmland. If the public will is to slow down building out, then you must build up. You can’t have it both ways.

Sadly, at the very minute town officials announce any type of plan; it faces opposition from activists and civic groups because their not happy unless their stopping everything. After all, its all about power and control. And they apparently won’t be happy until they eliminate any and all chance for economic recovery.

What is desperately needed in this town is a true leader. Someone that’s an effective communicator, a fighter, and a savvy business leader. Someone with the courage to take on big government, big activists, and the wisdom to know how. Someone that’s already been in the fight. Someone that could hit the ground running. Nothing personal, just business.

 After 205 years, let’s finally stop being miserable.