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Patchogue Village Citizens For Open Village Government

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Patchogue Village Citizens For Open Village Government

This is the page for the group Civic Action in Patchogue Village.

11/03/2026

It’s election day today 11-3-26.

Voting is the heartbeat of American democracy.

It is that moment when the People speak with their votes.

It is one of the most important actions that individual citizens can take to keep our country great.

Vote today because it does matter.

11/02/2026

HOTEL TAX ABATEMENT: HOW THE PUBLIC FIGURES IN
By John Bogack, editor

On the 11th of this month, unless there are some further delays, the Brookhaven Town Industrial Agency (IDA) will be meeting on future tax abatements for the new hotel in Patchogue Village.

Using the Carriage House apartment house project tax abatement history as a model here is how this all may play out soon.

At the meeting the 7-member appointed Board will get a consultant report about the requested 20-year abatement. That report will open a flood of documents. It will offer some insights into the developer’s ability to pay for the project. It will detail estimated costs. It will provide the IDA board with some potential scenarios for a tax abatement schedule (e.g. 10-years, 17 years, 20 years).

In the Carriage House matter agreement between the developer and the IDA Board was not quick as the developer held out for a 20-year plan for some time before agreeing to a 17-year plan now in effect.

So, while this is all presumably scheduled for the 11th, if there are disagreements that require some more time to work out that could happen and delay decision making. Or there might be no disagreement, a plan is agreed to by both parties, and the proposed tax abatement plan will get a tentative approval to move on for public comment.

ABOUT PUBLIC COMMENT

It’s the public comment period where the public will have a chance for the first time to give some opinions about that proposed plan.
In the first instance comments to the Mayor and Board of Trustees can be made. While approval from Patchogue Village is not mandatory the IDA Board is required to notify the Board (and several other taxing jurisdictions e.g. school district). As in the Carriage House matter, the village will then send a notice and or give public testimony one way or the other about the proposed schedule.

As the Mayor and Trustees are elected officials, public comments should have some impact on their decisions. The most effective way for residents to express their opinions most probably will be by email. And/or public comment at any Trustee meeting held prior to when the Village does provide a formal response to the IDA Board.

PUBLIC HEARING

After notice is made to the public through the media there will be a public hearing held in Patchogue Village. The form of the public hearing is quite different from what residents usually associate with one.

Again, using the Carriage House matter as a model, the public hearing will be held at Village Hall in the morning hours of the day. The IDA Board will not be attending. Instead, the Executive Director will be appearing on behalf of the Board. The last hearing held in this fashion did include in person public comment (filmed too). A few speakers appeared among them, Mayor Pontieri.

Written comments from the public were also collected by the Executive Director if someone wanted to leave one but not stay to make a more public comment.

When the public comment is over shortly afterwards (it’s a tight schedule) then the issue of whatever abatement plan has been agreed to will be returned to the IDA Board for a final discussion and then vote.

In sum the public will not have a direct vote on the proposed abatement plan. The Village Trustees will not have a direct vote on it either. But the public will have some ability to sway opinions depending on just what number of residents comment and the content of those comments.

Our photo today: a recent promotional graphic published by the hotel’s architect about its future look.

11/02/2026

CIVIC CALENDAR THIS WEEK
By John Bogack, editor

There are two public meetings occurring this week. The first is today, the Village’s Community Development Agency (ADA) is meeting today. Its agenda can be found here: https://www.patchoguevillage.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_12072026-484

The meeting is open to the public and for those who wish to comment about any issue of concern or interest about its activities there is a public portion at the end of the meeting to do so. Its meetings are live streamed, and archived on the Village’s You Tube’s channel for later viewing.

The second meeting of note this week is a meeting of the Village’s Zoning Board of Appeals on Tuesday 11-3-26.

It’s a short agenda but it does one big item on it that is re-appearing:

“AV Management Group, dba Stereo Garden, 9 Railroad Avenue, seeks Special Permit renewal for a nightclub/cabaret use- 435-21(A)(1). Subject premises is located in the D-3 Business Zone.”

Its agenda: https://www.patchoguevillage.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_11032026-506

Like the CDA meeting, the meeting is open to the public, there will be public hearings, the meeting will be live streamed and video otherwise archived on the Village’s Tube Tube channel.

Both meetings begin at 6 p.m. and will be held at Village Hall.

10/27/2026

HOW TAX ABATEMENTS GET APPROVED
By John Bogack, editor

In a few weeks a decision about whether the new hotel owners in Patchogue Village will gain a schedule of tax abatements (real property tax reductions) is on the horizon.

This will be decided by the 7-member Board of the Brookhaven Town Industrial Agency. What does the IDA do? This AI generated response provides an answer:

“The Town of Brookhaven Industrial Development Agency (IDA) is a public benefit corporation of the State of New York tasked with driving economic development and job creation within the Town of Brookhaven.

Established in 1971, the IDA operates as an unelected public board whose members are appointed by the Brookhaven Town Board. Its primary goal is to improve the local quality of life by helping businesses relocate to, expand within, or build facilities throughout the town.

What the IDA Does

The agency acts as a financial facilitator for commercial, industrial, housing, and energy projects by offering lucrative financial incentives that lower the cost of doing business. Its main tools include:
• Tax Abatements: Providing relief on real property taxes (often through Payments in Lieu of Taxes, or PILOT agreements) for qualified capital improvements.
• Tax Exemptions: Granting full sales tax exemptions on materials and equipment purchased during the construction phase, as well as mortgage recording tax exemptions.]
• Bond Financing: Issuing lower-cost tax-exempt and taxable bonds and notes to finance corporate acquisitions and construction projects.
•
Who are the members of the Brookhaven IDA?: https://brookhavenida.org/board-members

When the IDA Board reaches a point when there is provisional agreement among its members to grant tax abatements what happens next? Again, another AI response leads the way:

“Under New York State General Municipal Law § 859-a, which governs all Industrial Development Agencies (IDAs) including the Brookhaven Town Industrial Development Agency, the agency must provide at least ten (10) days' notice before holding a mandatory public hearing for any project proposing financial assistance (such as property tax abatements, PILOT schedules, or sales tax exemptions) that exceeds $100,000. [

Core Requirements & Timeline
• 📢 Newspaper Publication: The Brookhaven IDA must publish the public hearing notice in a newspaper of general circulation at least 10 calendar days prior to the scheduled hearing date.
• 🏫 Affected Taxing Jurisdictions (ATJ) Notice: The agency must also deliver an official notice of the hearing directly to the chief executive officer of each affected local taxing jurisdiction (the relevant school district, town, and county) at least 10 days in advance.
• 💻 Digital Posting: In addition to print media, the notice is typically posted to the Brookhaven IDA Public Notices page.”

Once the public hearing has been held, and the public comment period is over then the IDA Board will meet and reach a decision about allowing any tax abatements.

In sum the abatement decision will be made by an agency of Brookhaven Town among its goals is to advance the business interests of the Town including Patchogue Village. All its members are appointed by the Town Supervisor and Town Board. Its decisions do not require the approval or consent of the elected members of the Village of Patchogue Trustee Board.

Next up, theory versus practice: a look at how the recent the tax abatement approval process for the Carriage House apartment project in Patchogue Village can serve as a model for what the public can expect for the process this time around.

Pictured today: Fred Braun, Chairman of the Brookhaven Town IDA

10/26/2026

WHAT’S IN A TAX ABATEMENT PLAN?
By John Bogack, editor

The owners of the new Tapestry/Hilton hotel in Patchogue Village currently have a tax abatement request before the Brookhaven Town Industrial Develop Agency (IDA). That request will soon be considered by the IDA in early November. The owners have advised the IDA Board an approval is necessary for the hotel to open.

At present their request has taken this form:

• Up to $1.8 million in sales tax exemptions
• Up to $333,000 in mortgage recording tax exemptions
• A 20-year property tax savings plan via a Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILOT)

Many readers on this page have asked questions about just what are the tax abatements that get included in this kind of request. To get everyone on the same page this is an AI generated answer that provides some good answers to that question:

“When the Town of Brookhaven Industrial Development Agency (IDA) votes to approve a financial assistance package, they grant exemptions and abatements across three primary categories of taxes: real property taxes, sales and use taxes, and mortgage recording taxes.

Real Property Taxes (Land and Building Improvements)
•
What is abated: The IDA provides an exemption from traditional real property taxes. This covers the standard real estate tax assessments collected on behalf of Suffolk County, the Town of Brookhaven, local School Districts, and local Special Districts (such as fire, water, or light districts). If the project is located within an incorporated village (such as Patchogue), village property taxes are also included.

Proportional Reductions across All Districts

Because a PILOT takes the place of standard real estate taxes, the abatement spans across all jurisdictions that levy taxes on that property. This includes:
• School Districts
• Library Districts
• Fire & Ambulance Districts
• Town and County Taxes

If an agreement states a developer receives a 50% abatement on new capital improvements for the first year, then all of those individual districts will see their corresponding portion of "new" tax revenue from that property reduced by 50% for that year.

Allocation of PILOT Payments

The money the developer does pay under the PILOT program is collected and distributed to each affected district. The funds are split proportionally based on what percentage of the total tax bill that specific district normally represents.

The Unimproved Base Tax Remains Affected

Typically, IDA abatements apply specifically to the value of new construction or capital improvements. Developers are almost always required to continue paying 100% of the baseline taxes owed on the original, unimproved land value. This base payment is distributed normally to the school, library, and fire districts. [

How it works (PILOT Agreements):

Instead of paying normal property taxes, the developer enters into a Payment-In-Lieu-Of-Tax (PILOT) agreement. The standard policy typically structures a partial property tax abatement over a 10-to-15-year period (though exceptional projects sometimes receive extensions up to 17 or 20 years). Under the PILOT, the developer pays a reduced, predetermined schedule of payments. This often scales so that the abatement applies primarily to the increase in assessed value from new capital improvements. These PILOT revenues are distributed back to the local taxing jurisdictions in proportion to what they would normally receive.

Sales and Use Taxes
•
What is abated: Fully exempts New York State and Suffolk County sales and use taxes on eligible items.

How it works: Acting as an agent of the IDA, the developer, contractors, and subcontractors can buy goods tax-free. This exemption strictly applies to building construction materials, machinery, furniture, fixtures, and new equipment purchased during the initial construction and equipping phases. It does not cover ongoing daily operating expenses once the facility opens.

Mortgage Recording Taxes
•
What is abated: Waives or partially exempts the developer from the New York State mortgage recording tax.
•
How it works: This is a one-time exemption applied when the business takes out commercial mortgages to finance or refinance the acquisition, construction, or equipping of the project site. “

Note: AI generated responses are good but not perfect. If we need to fine tune these answers in the future, we will as needed.

Next up: what is the approval process for a tax abatement granted by the Brookhaven IDA.

Our illustration today: owner supplied graphic of the top floor of the new hotel once built, night time view.

10/26/2026

TRUSTEE MEETING TONIGHT 10-26-26
By John Bogack, editor

The Patchogue Village Board of Trustees will be meeting tonight and the agenda for the meeting is online.

Our take, it’s a routine agenda without any major impacts on the public. The begins at 6 p.m., at Village Hall.

Online agenda: https://www.patchoguevillage.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_10262026-505

That said in our panel today we have included a picture of the intersection of Division St. and River Ave. It’s a bit of catch-up reporting from the last Trustee meeting. Many residents ought to find this good and important news. At the last Trustee meeting Mayor Pontieri committed to a new traffic study for this intersection. The last one was made was more than a decade ago and as time has gone by its recommendations have become outdated.

The intersection in the next two years is going to become an even more pivotal intersection in Patchogue Village. It is part of the traffic pattern for the Carriage House apartment house project on W. Main St by 2028 once those apartments begin to rent out And it’s going to be a main in and out road for the new hotel once it is up and running sometime in the same year. The forecast is: more cars and traffic for an already stressed intersection.

A recent Newsday article about road conditions in Nassau County documents that local municipalities, meaning taxpayers, can be held liable in millions of dollars for suits alleging negligent maintenance where serious injuries occur attributable to neglected roads.

Therefore, preventive measures now are all the more needed.

Newsday subscribers can find the article here, all others there may be a pay wall: https://www.newsday.com/long-island/investigations/elmont-crash-students-fszikke7

The last item of the agenda is the public portion at which time any member of the public may address the Mayor and Trustees about any matter of interest or concern.

10/25/2026

ABOUT THAT IDA VIDEO
By John Bogack, editor

Well, it turns out that the Brookhaven IDA did post video on You Tube for its 10-21-26 meeting.

It’s about 20 minutes long and it does provide a good snapshot of where the Tapestry/Hilton hotel project in Patchogue Village currently stands.

In our post today we have some time stops for particular areas of the video to help readers find areas of particular interest. However, it did turn out that parking issues at the new hotel was a major topic of interest for IDA board members. That means that parking issues come up one way or the other during most of the video. So, to catch each of those instances a full look at the 20 minutes might be the best way to see all the content about that issue.

That said here is our video guide:
The video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwHiZSxjgnU

All time stops in minutes and seconds, all approximate.

20:55 IDA begins discussion of amended plan with John Gordon beginning a discussion of the amended hotel plan.
23:19 Pretty quickly questions begin to arise from IDA board members about parking issues. At this point Yair Yaish, one of the two owners of the new hotel (his wife Heddy is the other owner) takes over the hotel presentation. He then responds to parking issue questions.
24:49 Mr. Yaish moves on to other issues he wants to discuss, other changes in the plan for the hotel, but pivots back to parking issues.
27:54 M. Yaish responds to questions about financing for the project and future construction plan issues. He also expands on ambitious plans to expand the brand of the hotel once opened as a way of boosting occupancy for the hotel and related activities (e.g. conventions, stopping off point for visitors to the Watch Hill national seashore ferry dock). He also indicates a late 2026 December groundbreaking for construction is a goal.
31:12 Mr. Yaish discussed the role of parking at the nearby LIRR parking lot to deal with parking overflow issues in the future. And other plans to deal with that issue.
35:25 Mr. Yaish speculates on a 3/31/28 opening date and provides some alternative dates.
36:42. Mr. Yaish projects at least 50 full-time jobs at the hotel, and about 200 construction jobs.
38:13 The IDA votes to accept the amended plan (but full approval of tax abatement application yet to come). At the end of the meeting various IDA board members express their intent to be at the ribbon cutting when the hotel opens. Mr. Yaish invites them all to attend.

The IDA portion of its meeting relating to this amended application ends.

The Brookhaven Industrial Development Agency (IDA) next meets on 11-18-26. At that meeting it is expected its consultant agency will deliver a report about the proposed hotel owner’s application for tax abatement relief.

The report should include an assessment of the finances possessed by the owner to build the hotel in the first place. It should also include some projected construction and other costs for the hotel. A jobs projection should also be in the report.

Last but certainly not least there will be projections about various tax abatement plans pegged to their length (e.g. ten, fifteen years or longer). The applicant at this point is seeking a 20 year tax abatement plan.

Our photo today, the illustration says Tempo Hotel but it’s actually the Tapestry/Hilton hotel.

10/25/2026

FYI

10/24/2026

MOCA LIGHTS
By John Bogack, editor

It’s the MOCA Lights festival this weekend and up to 10-26-26. It’s expanded this year with additional events, guided tours, an open market and a trolley service to help people get around to the various sites.

In our panel just some of the events being held during the festival.

For more information about the event itself and its program this link: https://patchoguearts.org/moca-l-i-ghts-2026/

10/24/2026

COMMUNITY EVENTS THIS WEEKEND
By John Bogack, editor

In our panel today there are some posts about community events this weekend of different kinds. Most but not all are in Patchogue Village.

The fund raiser for the Patchogue Pride organization is nearby in Sayville.

The panel includes one event from the MOCA Lights festival now occurring in the village. We are going to have a second post today about the other events part of that event later this morning.

Events posted by start times and start dates otherwise.

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