Long Island Index 2005

Abstract:

Long Island has been by design a place for families. Yet today the cherished dream of family life is threatened as high housing costs drive young people, and seniors, away from the region, away from their homes. Last year’s Long Island Index identified the “brain drain,” and the related issue of affordable housing, as critical challenges facing the Long Island region. But underlying these challenges is a deeper and broader issue: the central matter of land use. Examining land use is fundamental to seeing where we are and how we got here—and to determining where we go from here. This Special Analysis investigates land use patterns on Long Island: its history, aims, consequences, and considerations for the future.