Nassau County Comptroller Jack Schnirman Hosts Community Roundtable on Modernizing “The Deal” of Living in Nassau County
Next report in This Is Nassau series released at roundtable discussion.
Uniondale, NY – Today, Nassau County Comptroller Jack Schnirman held a community roundtable discussion at the Uniondale Public Library to discuss the challenges Nassau County faces, as detailed in data-driven reports produced by the Policy and Research Unit at the Comptroller’s Office. The meeting centered around the release of the next analysis in the This Is Nassau series, “Modernizing ‘The Deal’ of Living in Nassau County.” The report detailed challenges that Nassau County will face in the years ahead and followed up on analysis featured in the office’s Demographic Profile, Black Economic Equity report, and The Deal for the Next Generation.
The roundtable included local officials, civic leaders, and community advocates.
“Our 20th century policies and ideas for developing and sustaining our communities are not meeting the needs of the 21st century. When government doesn’t adapt, its population does instead,” said Nassau County Comptroller Jack Schnirman. “The report we are releasing today provides the data and numbers that detail the challenges that residents face, but its critical to go beyond the numbers and hear the stories impacting those in the community. The Comptroller’s Office can best help advance us forward not just by releasing reports, but by listening and involving leaders in the community who have the best sense of how we can most effectively meet the needs of our County’s residents. Today’s roundtable is a critical step forward in the direction of creating an equitable and fair County that works for all.”
"From one community to another, the numbers presented by the Comptroller's office show that there are stark differences in education, housing, and development,” said Town of North Hempstead Councilwoman Viviana Russell. “The implicit biases that exist here on Long Island continue to hinder an equitable quality of life. As we have these discussions to address the equity gap here on Long Island, we must be mindful of our roles and take action to address the issues that the numbers represent."
The report outlines areas for policy development that could help provide Long Islanders with the support needed to improve the economy, quality of life, and ultimately prevent them from leaving the region. It highlights stresses such as:
- 9.3% decline in population in the 20-44 age group since the year 2000.
- 44.4% of 25-35-year-olds on Long Island live with their parents, compared to 16% of this age group nationally.
- 5% job growth rate in Nassau County, compared to New York City and Suffolk County’s job growth rates of 16% and 12% respectively.
“Today we have assembled an amazing crowd of community leaders and advocates so that we can have a candid conversation about how to best digest the challenges that we face, and to inform what the Policy and Research Unit should look at in future reports,” concluded Schnirman.”