Public Comment: LIRR Third Track Scoping Session May 25, 2016
The following Public Comment was given on May 25, 2016 concerning the LIRR third track project during a meeting in Hicksville, NY. My name is Richard Murdocco. I am the founder and publisher of The Foggiest Idea, and am land use columnist who writes professionally on...
Suffolk Shouldn’t Have to Chop Down Trees to Let Solar Panels Spring Up
The following was written for the Long Island Press, and published on May 25, 2016. You can read the original here. A troubling new trend in Suffolk County is pitting environmentalists against civic groups: clear cutting forested open spaces to make way for solar...
LIRR’s Third Track Needs Full Support Now—No More Local Stops Down The Line
The following was published in the Long Island Press on May 16, 2016. You can read the original here. You can read the November 2016 Crain's NY op-ed on the subject here. The time has come for Long Islanders to get all aboard the Long Island Rail Road’s third track...
Public Comment on NYMTC Plan 2045, May 12, 2016
The following comments were delivered during a public hearing on NYMTC's Plan 2045 on May 12, 2016 at the Nassau County Legislature. My name is Richard Murdocco, and I am the founder and publisher of The Foggiest Idea, and am land use columnist who writes...
Zoning Laws Can Reflect Community and Market Needs
The following was written for Inside Sources, and published on May 11, 2016. The piece was nationally syndicated in media outlets across the US. You can read the original here. With the rise of the New Urbanism movement, traditional land-use zoning has come under...
Is Bellone’s Bid for a Drinking Water Tax a Ploy to Promote Development?
The following was written for the Long Island Press, and published on May 9, 2016. You can read the original here. From the crowded podium at an outdoor press conference in Yaphank last month, backed by a supportive chorus of environmentalists, bureaucrats, civic...
What’s Next for the Long Island Index?
The following was published in the Long Island Press on April 22, 2016. You can read the original here. After providing significant analysis of our region’s various maladies for more than a decade, the Rauch Foundation is actively looking to find a new organization...
Syosset Park is Going to Be a Great Place – Someday, Maybe
The following was written for the Long Island Press, published on April 5, 2016. You can read the original here. Syosset Park is a rarity in Nassau County: It’s a large-scale development of regional significance. The proposal for the former Cerro Wire property is now...
Doling Out Tax Breaks Doesn’t Stop Companies From Taking Our Money and Running
The following was written for the Long Island Press, and published on March 22, 2016. You can read the original here. Long Island’s Industrial Development Agencies have long been a source of power and patronage for local politicians, yet the IDAs’ effectiveness at...
Downtowns Are All the Rage These Days, But Some Places Can’t Handle the Development
The following was written for the Long Island Press, and published on March 9, 2016. You can read the original here. On Long Island these days, downtowns are happening places—at least in policy circles. From the governor’s office to the local village, it’s the buzz...
