Flanders folks come out against housing
Southampton Town floating plan for 12 affordable rentals
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Back in 2000, when the late Vincent Cannuscio was Southampton Town supervisor, residents of Flanders, Riverside and Northampton packed a meeting on a Saturday morning to express their opposition to a proposal to build affordable housing in their neighborhoods.
Nine years later, at a recent civic meeting attended by Councilwoman Anna Throne-Holst, it appeared that feelings on the subject have not changed.
Ms. Throne-Holst, who is also the Democratic candidate for town supervisor, made a pitch at the Flanders, Riverside and Northampton Community Association meeting last week to build 12 affordable rental housing units in the area.
She was met with unanimous opposition from the some 40 people in attendance, but the councilwoman warned that if the town doesn't develop this land as affordable housing, someone else will.
The town's proposal falls under what is known as the 72H program, she explained. These lots were acquired by the county on tax default and the county in turn deeded them over to the town with the condition that they be used for affordable housing. To qualify for an "affordable" rental, a person could earn no more than 80 percent of the area median income, which would work out to $49,750 for one person, and no one would pay more than 30 percent of their income on rent, officials said.
The proposal currently calls for the apartments to be built on nine lots in Flanders and one in Riverside.
If the county takes the parcels back, it likely will turn them over to a nonprofit group that will build affordable housing on them, she said.
"This allows us to move forward in a way we can all be comfortable with, rather than not knowing who they get turned over to and what they might do with them," Ms. Throne-Holst said.
"We are not going to move forward with any of these plans without the buy-in of the community," she said. "We don't want [you] to feel this is being shoved down your throat."
The sites include two lots on Flanders Road, two on Maple Avenue, two on Oak Avenue, two on Flanders Boulevard, and one on Brookhaven Avenue, all in Flanders, and one on Ludlam Avenue in Riverside,
The town also is planning to build affordable housing on two lots on North Jones Road in East Quogue under the same program.
"One of the things I'm concerned about is that the density in this area is so high already and it really impacts the school district as well as our groundwater," said Flanders resident Chrissy Prete, who is also a member of the Riverhead school board.
She said there already is affordable housing in Flanders.
"The schools are already bursting at the seams and the taxes are outrageous," she added.
Residents also said they would rather have affordable units that are owned rather than rented, because people who own their homes will take better care of them.
"Home ownership makes you a part of the community," resident Tom Weber said.
Residents also complained that the rentals would not pay full taxes because of a covenant requiring that they remain affordable. They said those taxes would be picked up by everybody else.
"My taxes have gone from $6,000 to $8,000 in the three years I've lived here," said resident Terry Flanagan. "I pay 60 percent of my income to live here."
Resident and former civic leader Mike Brewer said Flanders and Riverside residents made it clear that they did not want more affordable housing during the development of the master plan and several planning studies of the area.
"Two years ago, we fought this battle," resident Carl Iacone said.
"We're here to talk about this, so if there is absolutely no appetite for this, we will go back to the drawing board," Ms. Throne-Holst said.
Bonnie Cannon, the chairperson of the housing authority, said they have met with church leaders in the Flanders and Riverside communities and were told there is a need for rental housing in those neighborhoods.
Residents asked if a representative from Suffolk County could speak to them at a future meeting.
tgannon@timesreview.com
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