Business View Civil and Municipal | May 2021

51 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL MAY 2021 HAVE FUN \ WIN \ BE NICE www.tritecre.com Strengthening Communities Together DEVELOPMENT \ CONSTRUCTION \ MANAGEMENT V I LLAGE OF PATCHOGUE , NEW YORK accessibility to the train.” Although ease of access to larger metropolitan areas has been a central theme of Patchogue’s since its early days as a seaside resort town, Pontieri believes that a commitment to leadership has played an even more valuable role in the Village’s social and economic recovery. “We’ve had some very smart managers that have done some things most communities don’t do,” he says. “The Mayor in 1960 got the downtown businesses to purchase and pay for 2,200 parking spaces and turn them over to the Village. What he started was essentially a business use district. A different Mayor in 1996 had the foresight to know that the theater could anchor the downtown – 1100 seats – you bring that many people onto Main Street a couple of nights a week, all these restaurants, it’s made for them.” Pontieri adds, “When you build these things, you’re building what effect they’re going to have tomorrow. It’s not like paving a road to fill a pothole. It’s about building with a future outlook. And that’s what we’ve looked to do: to build Patchogue for the future.” Courtesy of Benny Miggs