Cheap Waterfront

So I was checking MLSLI and found this home in Mastic Beach for sale. Price: $120,000K. And it's WATERFRONT!

No, really check out the little creek out back:

It's the green-roofed home with the pool in the backyard. It doesn't look like it has much of a backyard but remember the pic is far away (it has enough to fit a small above-ground pool apparently). The little creek is Lion's Creek. And though you can't fit a yacht in the back, I'm sure a nice little fishing boat or something (I'm not much of a boat connoisseur) could be used to navigate from Lions to Forge River and then beyond.

It's not a handy-man but definitely needs some TLC because it's described as having "lots of potential". The negative is that it's on Wavecrest so it has lots of traffic. But it's so far into the lot that you can't really see nor hear the traffic. Still, it's a 3bd 2bth home on a 100x200 lot for $120,000 is not bad at all.

Surprise By Crappy Design

You see that beautiful waterview home? It was for sale for about $239K and someone bought it.

Do you know what they did?

They painted it an ugly blue.

BLUE!

I mean, they could have powerwashed it and maybe tried to get the original greyish-wood color thing back; and make it look like a home that's in a beach community.

Which it is!

But no.

They painted it BLUE!

AN UGLY BLUE!

Is there a home abuse hotline I can call to report this hate crime?

Universe Forgive Me For I have Sinned...

It's been almost a month since my last confession!

Oh dear, where do I begin? Well, I've been meaning to write about the meeting I went to at the Mastic Beach Fire House for the village incorporation they're doing in the area. It was in the beginning of the month so I don't have everything fresh in my mind but I'll try my best.

It was a mild winter night. The stars were shining, and the trees were singing ... OK, let me stop. I wrote in my other post that I was on the fence about the whole issue but I think I've warmed up to it a lot. The way it'll work out any taxes currently being paid to the Town of Brookhaven (with the exception of taxes collected for school, law enforcement, and waste disposal) will go to the incorporated village. Basically, the village will be set up to do code-enforcement and for planning (ie. if you have a plot you want to build a home in or an addition to your own home). Also, the taxes that the cable company, phone, LIPA etc. charge will come to the town. The way they presented it was a bit of a bore and confused people (nothing like rambling about a whole bunch of numbers without even so much as a friggin powerpoint), but most of the people got the gist of it.

I would say support for it was very high, with a few exceptions. There were some people there thinking that their taxes were going to quadruple or something and they don't want to pay an extra $20 a month in taxes. Of course, if the state raises the tax on the sale of cigarettes they'll be more than happy to pay that extra $60 a month to blacken up their lungs.

No worries, as their opposition was quickly countered with the power of love from the Carebear bunch that imagined the streets clean, the values of their homes increasing by 1000%, and them being able to leave their bicycles in the front of their homes without fear of them being stolen because ... well, they'll be incorporated! And it'll suddenly be Pleasantville!

They were looking for volunteers to do the census (which is the next step towards incorporation), and I was thinking of signing up but I don't know if I'd have enough time. They were also selling these funky green and yellow lawn signs that said "I Support The Village" or something like that. I was going to buy 2 (they were like $5 each) but I knew they'd be gone the next day if I planted them on my lawn. Yep, it's gotten that bad the past few years. It was never like that when I moved out here. :(

That's about it. This post seems rushed and there's something "off" about it for me. Maybe it's because it's been a while and homie's gotta get his groove back.

Flip This Neighborhood

Yesterday, as I sat in Border's (I really wish we had something like that), I was thumbing through the Sunday Newsday and found myself reading a story in the LI Life section about the foreclosure crisis. Not surprisingly, there was a feature on Mastic Beach. The article (you can read it for yourself here) featured a street just not too far from Neighborhood Rd called Lynbrook Rd and interviewed a few of the residents in that small street. They spoke of how the vacant homes are an eyesore and bring nothing but squatters and others looking to steal (the copper pipes) or just cause damage to the properties.

One of the residents there expressed his love for the area and described how he has "deer roam into his yard and eat carrots from his hand". He was contemplating buying one of the vacant homes to fix it up and sell it but his wife is tired of the area and wants to leave.

Then I had an epiphany. What if a small group of local residents got together and did just that? Get a home, fix it up and sell it? The home has to be owner occupied, of course (I'm tired of all the rentals that bring shady people), and the objective is not to make money (though we wouldn't shy away from profit). The objective would be to minimize the vacant properties and have more owner occupied homes, affordable homes, to stop the "brain drain" in the island.

This group would have to be small (too many chefs ruin the soup) and each member would have their role based on the experiences that they could bring. I, for instance, have all my hard-money lenders, Realtors, and RE attorney connections. I'm handy with a hammer but it would be better to have a contractor or someone who's renovated a home before just to know the costs of material and have the renovation flow smoothly. Someone with a good eye for design would also be a good fit (I'm horrible at picking colors and all that design stuff). Someone who's good at marketing and could market the hell out of the property once it's done. And perhaps a silent partner to do small funding for small incidental expenses. I would, personally, prefer to take all the profit from the first year and not touch it. Keep it in the bank so that we'd have enough to bypass the lenders and pay cash for the properties in the second year (minimizing our monthly costs). I think a good goal for the first year would be to sell 4-5 homes.

Take this home that's on sale, as an example. It has fire damage but it's fixable. Now, how much would something like that cost? $50K? $75K? $100K? I don't know, I'm not a contractor. I do know that it's only $51K and could easily sell for $225-250K. So there's plenty to work with. Even if we'd have to sell it to break even it'll be a steal for a hard working family. And it'd definitely be better than a boarded up burned home.

Hmmm ... my brain is ticking. But I don't think I could set something up quickly enough to have the first home up for sale around April or May (the best month to sell a home). I definitely wouldn't want to have the first home out on the market in the fall or winter (the worst months to sell a home).

Never in my 26 years...

of living in NY have I witnessed what I did yesterday. I was at the Indian reservation getting some cigarettes for a friend (I don't smoke but since I was going to see her she had asked me to pick up a couple of packs on the way to her house) and there were 3 people ahead of me. A heavyish set woman, an elderly lady, and a guy probably a few years younger than me.

As the three of them were walking into the Peacepipe Smoke shop, the first person (the heavy set lady) tripped on the step into the shop, hit the wall and then fell hard to the floor. The store was pretty busy and you could hear (from outside as I still hadn't gone in) the gasps from people when she fell. What did the 2 people behind her do?

Nothing.

The old lady said "oh my" and kept walking. The healthy looking young punk ahead of me looked down and walked around her as if she were a bag of trash. Once I finally walked in I asked if she was OK and a girl that works there (and my future ex-wife) came over. We both grabbed an arm and she said "I think I need one more person". I laughed, and said "no you don't", squatted behind her put my arms under hers and lifted her up (thank you squat workouts). She was OK. Shocked and embarrassed but otherwise she was fine.

Now, I could understand the old lady behind her not doing anything. She seemed like she'd have a hard time getting around without her cane. But the guy in front of me was just a ... well, a dick.

Really, guy? You see a woman fall in front of you and you just walk by? Not even ask if she's OK? Well, it wasn't only him. There were a few other people in there and no one else came over to help.

What the hell is wrong with people? I wonder how many men in there would have jumped if she were a model. I'm sure they would have jumped at the chance of helping a hottie out.

I can't believe some of the people in this town.

/end rant

The Not-So-Secret Hero Haven

I live really close to TJs. I mean, walking distance to TJs. So when I first moved out here I thought I was in hero heaven. At first I thought they were a bit pricey -- well, I still do -- but their bread is just so soft and delicious, and they always put just enough ham, and just enough cheese, and just enough mayo to make a great hero.

They were never into sliced bread, or -- gasp -- that healthy elitist "wheat bread" that the city folk like to eat with their Diet Coke and carrot sticks. No. TJs has always been about the hoagies. The quintessential Italian bread with your meat and cheese. Lettuce, mayo, and tomatoes (tomatos?). They have some awesome hot sandwiches too, just to spice things up a bit. And you get a huge iced tea with your sandwich which I swear has crack in it. Or something resembling that.

But I've found a new place. A place not unlike TJs with it's down-to-earthiness; but there is a difference with this place. I can't quite place my finger on it, but all I can say is that the Haven 1 at Hero Haven is to die for. And best of all, they are reasonably priced.

Go check out Hero Haven on Neighborhood Rd. You won't regret it.

Dances With Suffolk County Legislators

So I picked up a copy of The Press of Manorville & The Moriches and read an article about how the SC legislature approved a bill to take legal action against the Poospatuck Reservation for the "tax-free sale of cigarettes". Basically, the cigarettes sold at the reservation are supposed to be taxed if non-residents purchase them.

The problem isn't Sam the Smoker, or Carl the Cigar Chomper purchasing tax-free cigarettes. The problem, for the state, is the bootleggers that buy cartons by the trunkfull (literally) and then sell them in the city for $3-4 dollars LESS than what you would purchase them for in the boroughs.

The way I see it, that's a problem between the bootleggers and the state. The reservation should be able to sell them to whomever they want to sell them to without the state stepping in. According to the Poospatuck Reservation website, Governor Pataki "repealed all regulations concerning the imposition of sales and excise taxes on transactions which take place on Indian Territory in New York."

I'd be interested in seeing how this all plays out. The reservation is a limited sovereign nation (I state limited because they can't do certain things, like a preemptive strike at Saddleback Ranch for instance), and therefore the state is very limited in what they can require the "nation" to do. They're not recognized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (federal), but they are by the state.

We shall see...

Community Organizing

So I'm looking through some of the blogs of the local folk and I'm seeing a lot of enthusiasm towards village incorporation for Mastic Beach. Others are a bit worried about the tax implications and whether they want another "layer" of government.

I'm a bit torn on the whole issue. I understand the need for improving the area, but I wonder if incorporation is really necessary. I don't care too much about the tax implications or more of "big brother", I just think that what ails the community can be fixed without the need for incorporation. I see it as an easy way out, and I hate taking the easy way out (may be the masochist in me?). I also wish we could include the whole Tri-Hamlet/Moriches area and not leave them out. I'm pretty sure Shirley will also get incorporated but then it'll no longer be "Mastics Shirley & Moriches". It'll all be split up and the little dysfunctional family will be no more.

On January 20th the multi-universe will forgive our past transgressions and let us elect an inspiring individual to lead us for the next 4 years. What O has taught us (yes, I'm one of those supporters who affectionately calls Barack Obama "O") is that with the right knowledge, the right drive, and the right inspiration we could take matters into our own hands and change our community. One can argue that getting incorporated IS community organizing, and I could understand that argument; but in the end, incorporating would take things out of peoples hands and leave it all to a select few. Kind of how things are now.

We could educate everyone in the community about local town codes and who to reach when they see violations (and how to tactfully harass the town until they get things done).

We can get local papers to give us more ink when there are events happening that pertain to improving the area.

We can let our elected officials know that it's time to shape up, or ship out.

We can organize an "army of volunteers" to go out (when the weather is better) and hand out information. Gather information about the improvements that people want to see. Collect donations. Collect information about the people we talk to so we could create a database of people we can get in touch with to get even more volunteers and donations. It's a big community, and with lots of people, but I don't think that can stop us from becoming closer.

We can do that all without having to incorporate. Without having to hope that the Town of Brookhaven approves the application. We can do it without them.

Yes we can(*).







*OK that last part was a bit of hyperbole but I couldn't resist. Nor could I with this video that I love.