By John Ellis KordesVillage Historian

Roosevelt Field & Taxes

Q: I have a friend who, every time he visits, tells me how lucky Garden City is to receive taxes from Roosevelt Field. I don’t think we do. Do we? If not could you tell me why?

Of all the questions I am asked this is one of the most common - and most confusing. Let’s start with a little background. In 1912, 900 acres were leased from the Garden City Company just east of Clinton Road for an airfield. The Garden City Company was formed in 1893 by Cornelia Stewart’s (wife of A.T. Stewart) heirs. The airfield was called the Hempstead Plains Airfield until 1917 when the government took it over during WWI and renamed it Hazelhurst Airfield. It was soon renamed again - this time for good. After training there and then going off to Europe, Quentin Roosevelt was shot down and killed. He was the youngest son of former President Theodore Roosevelt and Hazelhurst was renamed Roosevelt Field in his honor. The airfield went on to become one of the most famous airfields in the world during the 1920’s, 30’s and 40’s. Virtually every famous aviator of the day came through Roosevelt Airfield. By 1950, the advent of jet travel and new larger airports spelled the end of Roosevelt Airfield. In the mid 1950’s plans for a shopping mall were announced by a developer. The land was unincorporated land of the Town of Hempstead except for a parcel on the western end along Clinton Road which is within Garden City’s border. Garden City fought the plans and won some concessions. There would be no entrance or signage along Clinton Road and there would be a wide landscaped buffer zone along Clinton Road to be known as Hazelhurst Park. The Mall was built and was expanded over the years and then completely renovated and upscaled in the late 1980’s.

Meanwhile in 1963, the government introduced zip codes and the Incorporated Village of Garden City was given “11530” which would be shared with the Incorporated Village of Stewart Manor, an unincorporated part of the Franklin Square School District known as Garden City South and a large unincorporated area to the east of Garden City known as East Garden City (including the Roosevelt Field Mall).

The Village of Garden City’s border runs down Ring Road at Roosevelt Field to Stewart Avenue before the entrance to Roosevelt Field. Except for Garden City Plaza and a few other buildings on Ring Road and a section of Commercial Ave., virtually all commercial development east of the above mentioned border does NOT pay taxes to Garden City. We provide NO services and the only connection is that zip code. The property taxes go to the Town of Hempstead and the school taxes go to the Uniondale School District. The businesses on Nassau Blvd. south pay property taxes to the Town of Hempstead and school taxes to the Franklin Square School District.

So that means successful and popular places like the Roosevelt Field Mall, the large Citibank building on the SE corner of Clinton Road and Old Country Road, Nassau Community College, Wingate Inn, the Garden City Center, Garden City Bowl, the Cradle of Aviation Museum and so much more are not part of Garden City’s tax base. They are all located in an unincorporated area known as East Garden City but the “east” is conveniently dropped causing a lot of confusion - is it Garden City or isn’t it?

Even the Garden City Chamber of Commerce accepts membership from this area which I have always questioned. Roughly a third of their membership is now from outside the Incorporated Village of Garden City which just adds to the confusion.

I believe the entire “zip code” situation has been unfair to the Village of Garden City. Businesses that don’t have to obey our zoning and pay taxes elsewhere should not share the same address as those businesses who support our Village’s tax base and obey our zoning and laws. However, let me be clear that it is not the fault of the businesses in East Garden City or Nassau Blvd. south because they are taking advantage of the zip code they were given. I would have done the same thing. The Town of Hempstead has also taken full advantage of this situation by acquiring all these taxes under a Garden City name. Then who’s to blame? We are! The Village of Garden City over the last forty years has either failed to recognize or ignored this situation. The results today are clear. Retail has fled Garden City as have many offices including doctors and lawyers (including our Village Attorneys) opting to go East - but retain the Garden City address without paying Garden City taxes.

Are we lucky to have Roosevelt Field and the rest of the commercial development to our East? Certainly not - especially with our name on it. It is a situation that will haunt this Village well into the future.