Why is this important?
There are more than 100 downtowns in Nassau and Suffolk counties.  These centers are not only important as places to work, live and shop, they also help define the character of surrounding communities and provide places to meet and interact.  Downtowns can also promote walking and transit use.  With less open space left for new development, downtowns provide the potential for Long Island to consider adding new housing, stores and offices. 

How are we doing?
For the last two years, the Long Island Index has conducted a survey of downtowns, selected to represent a diverse range of places of various size across the Island.  Thirty downtowns were surveyed in 2008, an increase of seven over the 23 places surveyed in 2007.  The current survey was completed as Wall Street was beginning an historic decline and the question remains, how will this be felt on Main Street?  As of September – October 2008 when the survey was conducted, the national financial decline was not apparent here.  Overall vacancy rates are on par with previous years and new construction was continuing.  The question is how Main Street will fare as the national economic pictures evolves, what will these rates look like a year from now?

Number and Occupancy of Storefronts
The number of storefronts per person indicates the amount of retail and service options available to residents, workers and visitors.  The overwhelming majority of downtowns have between 100-300 storefronts. When adjusted for population, the average downtown had 3 storefronts per 100 people.  These ranged from Southampton and Valley Stream, with over 10 storefronts per 100 people who lived in the downtown, to places like Long Beach and Brentwood which had less than one storefront per 100 people.  This does not necessarily mean that these places are underserved, since the size and diversity of establishments are also important, but they do show that some places have far more options relative to their population. 

The number of vacancies is one indication of the health and vibrancy of these downtowns as commercial centers.  Storefront vacancy rates refer to the percentage of downtown storefronts that are vacant at the time of surveying. Lower vacancy rates indicate that a downtown has a healthier economy while a high vacancy rate is a sign that businesses have left or are not attracted to a downtown. The lower the vacancy rate, the more likely that a resident or visitor will find the retail or service opportunity they are looking for in their downtown, and the more it will convey a sense of stability and community health.

The average storefront vacancy rate of our 30 field-surveyed downtowns was 9%. For the 23 downtowns field-surveyed last year, the rate is also 9%, an increase of 1% over last year’s 8% vacancy rate. Those downtowns with the largest increases include Smithtown, Port Jefferson Station and Riverhead where vacancy increased by about 6, 7 and 9% respectively.  Those downtowns with improved vacancy rates include Sayville, Cedarhurst and Huntington Station where improvements were around 2-3%. Brentwood, Babylon and Long Beach have the lowest vacancy rates of our surveyed downtowns, each under 5%.

Downtown Construction
Construction projects – be they major renovations or new construction – in a downtown area indicate new investment in housing, jobs and/or services. Some construction is to be expected over time even in stable communities, simply to replace or upgrade obsolete buildings or accommodate normal rates of turnover.  High rates of construction indicate more rapid change or growth.  Cumulatively, tracking downtown construction is one indication of how much Long Islanders are changing their perception of downtowns as a place to live, work and shop.

Of our 30 field-surveyed downtowns, 11 had no construction and eight had only one construction project underway at the time of survey. Huntington and Long Beach had at least five projects occurring in their downtown area. These projects ranged from refurbishing storefronts to the development of new multi-unit housing.  On the whole, this appears to indicate a relatively low level of construction and redevelopment. 

Banks Per Person
Services vary one downtown to another.  Recently there had been a significant increase in the number of banks coming to Long Island so the Index measured how many retail bank establishments were available in each downtown.  On average, there is one bank for every 4,500 people living in a downtown.  This covers a wide range, from less than 1,000 people per bank in places like Southampton and Rockville Center, to nearly 10,000 people per bank in Huntington Station.