(RealShare Apartments East comes to the Hyatt Regency in Miami, FL, on February 26.)

HEMPSTEAD, NY-In keeping with the Town of Hempstead's efforts to bolster its eco-friendliness, Mill Creek Residential Trust said Wednesday that its Nassau County apartment developments, West 130 and Metro 303, are on target to be certified LEED Gold for Homes. Reportedly, the two projects, both within the town's boundaries, will be the first of their kind on Long Island to receive such certification.

Both projects, Mill Creek's first on Long Island, are transit-oriented developments. West 130 is adjacent to the West Hempstead Long Island Rail Road station, allowing residents to commute into New York City within 50 minutes, Mill Creek says. The 150-unit West 130 was awarded a Smart Growth award in 2009 by Vision Long Island for its role in revitalizing the West Hempstead neighborhood.

“Mill Creek's focus on planet-friendly construction goes hand-in-hand with Hempstead Town's ongoing clean energy initiatives,” says town supervisor Kate Murray in a statement. “In creating the groundbreaking transit-oriented development zone, it is clear that Hempstead Town is focused on smart growth and energy conservation principles.” The town is the largest in New York State at more than 795,000 residents when its 22 villages and 37 hamlets are combined.

The 166-unit Metro 303 is located at the northern end of the Village of Hempstead, bordering the Village of Garden City. It's within a short walking distance of two LIRR stations, specifically the Country Life Press LIRR station to the north and the multi-modal Hempstead LIRR and bus terminal. It was recently honored with the 2012 Award for Housing Choices by Vision Long Island, for its role in furthering the diversification of housing options on Long Island.

“Now that we have begun our transformative downtown revitalization project, it is important to encourage residential and commercial growth throughout the Village of Hempstead,” Mayor Wayne J. Hall Sr. says in a statement. “The Metro 303 Project is an excellent example of this kind of growth being conducted in an environmentally friendly manner.”

In January, the village board approved a community benefits agreement for its $2.5-billion downtown redevelopment plan, voting 3-2 to approve the agreement with master developer Renaissance Downtowns UrbanAmerica. It requires the developers to make good-faith efforts toward giving the first 25% of construction and permanent jobs to village residents, and 25% of contracts to local or minority contractors. Further, a minimum of 10% of residential units must be affordable housing.

Instant Insights /

Mill Creek Aims for Gold as Hempstead Goes for Green

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