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Long Island’s formerly best kept secret – the economic power of the LI Innovation Park at Hauppauge – is now headline news. In an editorial this week, the Newsday Editorial Board cited the LI-IPH as a prime example of how to “reuse, repurpose, and revitalize” properties. As HIA-LI Board Chairman, Joe Campolo has been instrumental in efforts to unleash the economic potential of the Park, including the development of mixed-use apartments to revitalize the site and attract the next generation of workers to Long Island.

It’s easy to spotlight the big parcels of land across Long Island that we hope someday will be home to enormously important projects, from Belmont and both Hubs, to Heartland and Calverton.

But the smaller efforts to reuse, repurpose or revitalize the older, tired parcels that dot the Island are just as critical, as building blocks for the region’s future.

Officials across the Island should start looking closely at the properties in their communities that could benefit from a similar overhaul.

They can look to Long Island Innovation Park in Hauppauge as a prime example of what’s possible. The 1,650-acre area, once known as the Hauppauge Industrial Park, has long been zoned for light industrial development, with little potential for anything new. Dozens of parcels have remained vacant; hundreds more are used for storage.

Now, Smithtown has jump-started an effort to bring retail, apartments and office space to the park. Town officials are starting small, allowing an exemption for 13 parcels, each seven acres or larger, so developers can build mixed-use commercial and residential projects on those spaces. It’s an excellent first step, especially in a town like Smithtown, where nearly 90% of housing is single-family homes and where apartments and other economic development are desperately needed.

But it must be just the beginning of bringing a mix of uses to Innovation Park and other sites like it. There are lessons to be learned, for instance, for areas like the Route 110 corridor, where two years ago Babylon Town unfortunately ended plans to rezone the East Farmingdale area.

It’s not just about remaking industrial parks. Shopping malls, stand-alone department stores and strip malls are being eyed, too. The clearest example: Seritage Growth Properties’ plan to redevelop Hicksville’s Sears site into a mix of apartments, retail and more. Look, too, at the Macy’s property in Manhasset, which is ripe for a reimagining.

Also critical: the continued redevelopment of Long Island’s downtowns. Last month, Roslyn Village became the latest to approve a rezoning, allowing as much as 60 units per acre and 40-foot tall buildings. For now, that’s limited to just two properties near the train station. Village officials should look for ways to do more.

As the coronavirus pandemic hit, several other downtown projects hit snags and delays, as meetings were put off and uncertainty reigned. We’re now seeing a restart of that work, in areas like Baldwin and Bay Shore. Local officials must move them forward, so Long Island can start its march forward, too.

— The editorial board

Read it on Newsday.

The membership of St. George’s Golf and Country Club in East Setauket has elected Joe Campolo of Stony Brook to its Board of Governors, where he will use his legal and business sense to help steer the Club through the twin challenges of the pandemic and a difficult economy.

With roles on the Long Range Planning and Membership Committees, Campolo is focused on creating a roadmap for the Club’s future. Recognizing that fostering and developing new business relationships is critical for the Long Island economy in 2020 and beyond, Joe will immediately get to work to enhance the member experience and attract the next generation of club members.

Campolo is Managing Partner of Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP, a premier law firm recently recognized by Forbes as a Top Corporate Law Firm in America. In addition to running his own business and advising the who’s-who of Long Island about theirs, Campolo has kept an unyielding focus on growing the Long Island economy and investing in the community. His insight and no-fear attitude have led to some of the most significant economic initiatives on Long Island today, including the renaming, reinvestment, and rezoning of the Long Island Innovation Park at Hauppauge, the anchor of Long Island’s economy. A Marine Corps veteran, Campolo also serves on the Board of Directors of America’s VetDogs and the Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind.

St. George’s was established in 1915 and has repeatedly earned a coveted spot on Golfweek’s Top 100 Classic Courses in America. 

Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP is pleased to share that Partner Jeffrey Basso has earned an AV Preeminent rating in Martindale-Hubbell®, the highest possible rating from the most recognized and trusted legal directory and resource for 150 years. Ratings reflect the anonymous opinions of members of the bar and the judiciary, recognizing attorneys for both ethical standards and legal ability.  Basso joins all Senior Partners as well as numerous colleagues at the firm who hold the AV Preeminent rating.

In a peer review, a fellow attorney reported, “Jeff and I have worked closely on several matters over the past two years, including two expedited matters in the Delaware Court of Chancery” [recognized as one of the nation’s most prestigious forums for business disputes]. “He is a highly knowledgeable and effective advocate who is versatile and can successfully litigate a variety of complex business disputes in a lead counsel role. Jeff is especially able to quickly cut to the heart of the matter and attain efficient, successful resolutions in the best interests of his clients.”

Basso represents business owners and partners, corporations, corporate officers, shareholders, and investors in a variety of litigation matters in state and federal court involving business and contractual disputes.  An aggressive litigator, Basso has vast experience prosecuting and defending matters involving employment contracts, non-compete agreements, trade secrets, fiduciary duty, breach of contract, hour and wage disputes, real estate transactions, investments, and construction matters. He is also experienced in representing clients in business divorce matters, including the negotiation of creative strategies to divide assets, as well as business divorce litigation. 

Read more about Basso and contact him here.

By Timothy Bolger

Mixed-use developments that blend housing and commercial real estate long built separately on Long Island are transforming not only the region’s communities and downtowns, but also its biggest industrial park, experts say.

While transit-oriented housing — apartments within walking distance of Long Island Rail Road stations and other transportation hubs — has made inroads in recent years, plans are now in the works to construct such buildings in the Long Island Innovation Park at Hauppauge. 

“It is the most exciting project I’ve been involved in in my career,” Joe Campolo, a board member of the Hauppauge Industrial Association of Long Island (HIA-LI), told attendees of the group’s annual trade show, which was held virtually Wednesday and Thursday.

The HIA-LI changed the name of the Hauppauge Industrial Park to the LI Innovation Park last year as part of its plan to reimagine the business district — the second largest industrial park in the nation after Silicon Valley — and foster the next generation of technology companies. The apartment component of that plan was hatched for the same reason local municipalities are embracing mixed-use developments: to offer affordable housing to stem the Brain Drain — the Island’s young professionals moving away due to the high cost of living.

Sixty-seven percent of millennials — people born between 1981 and 1996 — are thinking about moving off LI, according to a nextLIstudy, yet millennials will make up 75 percent of the workforce in the next five years, a Deloitte survey found, noted Terri Alessi-Miceli, president and CEO of HIA-LI.

“It’s critical to build places for them to live, to work, to play,” she said.

The HIA-LI housing plan advanced earlier this year when the Town of Smithtown reclassified zoning in the industrial park, allowing developers to apply for special exemptions to construct apartment buildings with ground-level retail space. Campolo, who’s also managing partner of Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, LLP, a Ronkonkoma-based law firm, said the change could lead to as many as 1,000 apartments in the industrial park. Plans also include a greenway connection, quality-of-life amenities, business incubators, an advanced manufacturing hub, and a workforce training center that will address filling job openings in biopharma and finance, among other issues.

Campolo shared details of the project during a HIA-LI trade show webinar titled Long Island Transformational Projects: Economic Growth for Business and our Economy, which offered an update on some of the region’s largest mixed-use developments.

DEMAND OUTPACING SUPPLY

The gap between the number of housing units needed and available on the Island is forecast to nearly double over the next decade from more than 51,000 five years ago, according to Robert Coughlan, co-founder of TRITEC Real Estate Company, an East Setauket-based developer.

Yet TRITEC, one of the region’s leading mixed-use housing builders, has added just 2,531 new multi-family home units to the region in Patchogue, Ronkonkoma, Lindenhurst, and Port Jefferson that were the culmination of 17 years of work, he added. Despite the progress, community opposition persists from anti-development Long Islanders known for Not In My Backyard sentiment, commonly known as NIMBYs.

“NIMBYism … is usually led by, in our humble opinion, misinformed and misguided people and groups,” Coughlan said. “Often these people are the same people that are getting up at public hearings and saying, ‘our prices are too high on Long Island, our taxes are too high’ … They often don’t realize that multi-use housing in their neighborhoods will raise the value of their own homes and provide alternatives for their family members.”

He pointed to historical shifts in local housing needs. Forty years ago, more than half of households on LI were nuclear families — couples and their children — and households of single people living alone made up about 10 percent of the population. Now, nuclear families make up about a third of households and singles comprise a quarter. The population shift drives the need for more multi-family housing. 

“If we don’t increase supply to meet demand, we will chase populations away,” he said.

Of course, erecting apartment buildings doesn’t happen overnight. It can take millions of dollars and three to five years of planning before even getting approval to start construction, he noted. New Village at Patchogue took eight years to get done before it opened in 2014.

Russell Albanese, chairman of The Albanese Organization, the Garden City-based developer behind the Wyandanch Rising project that is midway through building the Wyandanch Village development, added that government backing is key to getting anything this big completed.

“You cannot build affordable housing without an [industrial benefit agency] benefit for a project and you can’t do it without New York State and their housing programs,” Albanese said. “It’s very challenging but also there’s great reward in being involved in community building like this.”

ACCELERATED TRANSFORMATION

The change in LI’s housing landscape comes not only amid a demographic shift, but also a confluence of economic, social, and governmental changes rippling across Nassau and Suffolk counties since the coronavirus pandemic arrived.

The changes include an increased residential real estate demand as New York City residents move to the Island to flee the virus, an accelerated shuttering of retail storefronts as shoppers were forced to buy online to avoid COVID-19, and the rise of local government agencies modernizing their building permit application processes with online meetings as public gatherings are limited, noted Mitch Pally, CEO of the Long Island Builders Institute.

Pally added that the changes come as the New York Islanders are midway through the construction of their new home, UBS Arena, being built at Belmont Park in Elmont, which will both bring the team home to LI after a stint in Brooklyn and allow fans to take the LIRR to see games — something that was not possible when the team played at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale.

“In two years, you’ll be able to … walk out of either Bob Coughlan’s TRITEC apartment in Ronkonkoma or Russ Albanese’s Wyandanch apartment and go to the Islander game by train,” Pally said. “What a transformation of Long Island that will be for people in Suffolk County to be able to get to and from the new Islander facility at Belmont by train. It will transform the relationship with the Islanders with many people who either cannot get there or don’t want to drive there.”

Read it on Long Island Press.

As HIA-LI Board Chairman, Joe Campolo presented the progress on and future of the Long Island Innovation Park at Hauppauge during the Executive Breakfast program at HIA-LI’s Virtual Trade Show on October 7, 2020.

One of the most critical economic development projects on Long Island today, the LI-IPH effort is the result of Campolo’s idea just over four years ago to analyze the economic impact of the Park. Once the staggering numbers behind the Park were revealed, “everyone had to pay attention,” he says. From there, the Suffolk IDA and Regional Plan Association joined with Campolo and HIA-LI to conduct further studies and make recommendations to expand, rebrand, and further develop the Park, now recognized as the anchor of Long Island’s tradable economy. Today, Campolo’s vision has become a roadmap to get things done on Long Island.

By Adina Genn

This year’s HIA-LI will be virtual amid the COVID-19 crisis. The trade show takes place Oct. 7 through Oct. 8, from 9 a.m.  to 12 a.m.

Already, 2,500 leaders in the business community have preregistered for the trade show, now in its 32nd year.

The event features programs promoting business expansion as well as breakout sessions. There will also be special offers, prizes and promotions.

“Long Island businesses, particularly those in tradable sectors based in the Long Island Innovation Park at Hauppauge, are the anchor of the regional economy,” Joe Campolo, board chair of HIA-LI and managing partner of Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, said in a statement.

“We’re thrilled to take the trade show global with the new virtual format. A trade show of this magnitude helps ensure that Nassau and Suffolk businesses are registering a strong impact on the global economic stage as well,” he added.

Campolo is a panelist the trade show program “Long Island Transformational Projects: Economic Growth for Business and Our Economy,” which is slated for Oct.  7 between 9 and 10:30na.m. It moderated by Mitch Pally, CEO of the Long Island Builders Institute. Panelists also include Bob Coughlan, rincipal with Tritec Real Estate; Russell Albanese, chairman of The Albanese Organization.  The panel will explore such large-scale Long Island economic development initiatives as the Belmont Raceway redevelopment/Nassau Hub, the Ronkonkoma Hub, and Wyandanch Rising.

Another webinar, “Habits to Foster Peak Performance,” features coach Dana Cavalea, former director of performance for the New York Yankees, whose leadership training helped lead the team to the 2009 World Championship. Taking place Oct. 8 between 9and 10:30 a.m., it will be moderated by radio and television personality Steve Harper.

There will be eight breakout sessions, covering marketing, technology, networking, leadership, and other business-related themes.

Every Long Island business sector will be represented at the event, including energy and environmental services, technology, manufacturing, financial services, hospitality, health care, media and advertising, education, government, not-for-profit, and workforce development.

Read it on LIBN.

Scott D. Middleton, a Senior Partner at Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, a premier law firm with offices in Ronkonkoma, Riverhead, and Westbury, has been elected President of the Board of Directors of East End Arts, an award-winning nonprofit committed to building the community through the arts. As President of the Board, Middleton will work to further the nonprofit’s mission to cultivate a wide range of creative and artistic expression through education, exhibition and performance, and collaboration across the community. 

East End Arts (EEA) is a powerful catalyst for economic and cultural revitalization.  The organization has long been recognized for its tourism initiatives and programs that collaborate with government, civic groups, private businesses, and other nonprofits. EEA recently recognized Middleton with a Community Impact Award based on his leadership.

“The impact of the arts and culture on communities has never been so important,” said Middleton. “As President of East End Arts, I’m looking forward to creating partnerships across the East End and beyond to strengthen the organization and expand our influence across the Long Island community.”

“Scott’s leadership will take East End Arts to new heights,” said Diane Burke, the organization’s Executive Director. “His legal and business experience, strong East End ties, and vision will help steer us through these unprecedented times and come out stronger.”

Middleton was instrumental in CMM’s expansion into the East End community, which voted the firm the Gold Prize – Best Law Firm in Dan’s Best of the Best. Head of the firm’s Riverhead office, Middleton is an accomplished litigator, particularly in the areas of municipal liability and personal injury, as well as a go-to land use attorney for municipalities and applicants alike. A lifelong Long Islander and patron of the arts, Middleton joined EEA’s board of directors in 2017 and has since supported numerous initiatives focusing on the business side of the arts, including JumpstART. He is also deeply involved with the Stony Brook University Alumni Association, Staller Center for the Arts, and Intercollegiate Athletic Board.

Learn more here.

By James T. Madore
james.madore@newsday.com  @JamesTMadore

The HIA-LI is taking its annual trade show and conference virtual and expanding the scope to include national and international attendees because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The business group, formerly called the Hauppauge Industrial Association, has scheduled its 32nd trade show for Oct. 7-8 from 9 a.m. to midnight each day. Admission is free except for two panel discussions, which cost $30 each.

More than 2,500 people have registered to attend so far, according to HIA-LI CEO Terri Alessi-Miceli.

“Business networking remains essential to business growth, especially amid the circumstances imposed by today’s pandemic. Because we can quickly kindle video-chat dialogs among attendees and exhibitors, this trade show will help Long Island entrepreneurs,” she said.

One panel discussion will feature developers Bob Coughlan of Tritec Real Estate and Russell Albanese of the Albanese Organization speaking about large projects, such as the Wyandanch Rising blight removal development, the Ronkonkoma Hub and the Belmont arena. The other panel will focus on leadership training with Dana Cavalea, former performance director for the New York Yankees.

To register, go to nwsdy.li/HIAtradeshow.

HIA-LI chairman Joseph Campolo said by making the trade show virtual and available to people from all over the world “this helps ensure that Nassau and Suffolk businesses are registering a strong impact on the global economic stage as well.”

Read it on Newsday.