Oyster Bay Town Supervisor John Venditto, stating that the time has come to bring the issue of a proposed shopping mall at the former Cerro Wire site in Syosset to a close, announced that he has asked the applicants to "do the right thing by the Town of Oyster Bay and its residents and withdraw its petition and consider another use for the site."

"Over the years, the town has done its due diligence, talking and listening to all sides on this important issue and working with the applicants and the community to see if a compromise was feasible. It is not." Venditto stated. "Following the public hearing on Sept. 7, 2000, the town board majority made it clear that we did not favor this application. Residents have stood with the town as we have fought the shopping mall proposal in court. I feel the time has come to put this issue to rest, once and for all, and have asked the applicants to withdraw the petition for a special use permit to construct a shopping mall and consider developing the site with an appropriate use, such as mixed-use residential, perhaps incorporating housing for seniors and first-time homebuyers."

In November, the Michigan-based Taubman company announced that they are seeking a final decision in the Supreme Court of the State of New York (Suffolk County) for approval to build an 860,000-square foot mall.

Venditto continued, "For the past five years, the town and the applicants have been rearguing this case over and over again in court, and the time has come to put an end to it. I have made it very clear to the applicants that the town and the residents do not want a shopping mall on the former Cerro Wire site and have asked them to withdraw the mall application and to consider developing the site with an appropriate use."

The supervisor went on to say that on June 12, 2001, the town board voted to reject the petition by Oyster Bay Associates Limited Partnership and WPIX, Inc., d/b/a Tribune New York Holdings for a special use permit to construct an 860,000-square foot mall on a 39-acre, industrially zoned site located on the northeast corner of Robbins Lane and Miller Place (North Service Road/Long Island Expressway). After an exhaustive review of the record and examining the proposal from every possible angle, issues involving traffic, safety and noise and the town board's concerns that these impacts could not be satisfactorily mitigated led the majority of the board to deny the special use permit. The applicants subsequently brought an Article 78 against the town seeking to overturn the board's decision.

Jack Kennedy, president of the Nassau-Suffolk Building Trades, the union which Taubman has stated would construct the mall, said "the only consistent thing about John Venditto's role as supervisor is his inability to make political decisions. Ribbon cuttings he can do. Leadership he can't."

Kennedy continued his criticism of the supervisor's latest announcement. "His latest NIMBY spasm is a betrayal of every member of the building trades. He has declared war on working men and women by letting the courts run the land-use process in Oyster Bay. By doing so, he washes his hands of responsibility and puts the construction trades on unemployment. He hasn't just done it at the Cerro site. He has performed this disappearing act on other projects as well where he can't stand up and do the right thing," sad Kennedy.

Morton Weber, Taubman's lawyer and partner of the Weber Law Group in Melville, said Venditto's statement has no bearing on the pending court case. "The matter is in the Supreme Court of Suffolk County and we anticipate a decision in the near future that will lead to development and building of the mall," he said.

Venditto said that, "by developing this property appropriately, rather than with a shopping mall, the quality of life of the surrounding neighborhoods will not be negatively impacted by the traffic, safety and noise issues a shopping mall would present. There is a need for housing for seniors and first-time homebuyers, so a mixed-use residential development proposal could be a welcome addition to the Town of Oyster Bay."

Todd Fabricant, chairman of the Cerro Wire Coalition said, "obviously we are thrilled and gratified by Supervisor Venditto's announcement. From day one when this ill-conceived project was first proposed over 11 years ago our community has said 'No Mall Here' and has been advocating alternate development instead. This announcement falls in line with our plans to go public with an alternate development concept in the near future and we too call upon the Taubman Company to work with the community to develop the site with a compatible use rather than continue to try and shove its mall down the throats of the town and the residents and business owners in Syosset and Jericho."

Kennedy added that the Long Island Building Trades would make good on its pledge to mobilize all union families throughout Nassau County. "In the first quarter of 2007 we are going to mobilize in solid Republican neighborhoods where many of our members live and make sure they understand they have been betrayed," Kennedy said. "We have said all along this is a litmus test for labor and our cards have just been called."