Long Island Transformation

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Long Island Transformation
The long island has experienced massive developmental patterns over the last 25 years. This period has been graced with a transition from a land of opportunities to a land of limits. Every opportunity has an attached hurdle that defines the flexibility of the prospect. Initially, the long island had fewer settlers and the resources available would cater to the needs of the dwellers. More settlers came in hoping to share what long island had but instead stretched the island to its limit. The building of the six-lane road is a clear proof of the inflow of new settlers in the town. However, this also depicts a developing society that is gradually changing its means of transport. The culmination of World War II led to housing development in Levittown and thus transforming the Nassau and Suffolk counties to become overpopulated. The element of overpopulation means that the available resources had to be shared amongst the dwellers.
The development of new transportation technologies led to an aggressive marketing of the Long Island. The long island had transformed into a tourist destination. However, dwellers were also aggressive farmers who had established a sound residential plan that gained a reputation to emerge as the quintessential American suburb. Long Island was mostly rural, but the building of the Long Island Railroad was pivotal towards its transformation to a more modern area. The railroad attracted riders who came to Long Island for recreational purposes.

However, large hotels were erected along the shores of the Long Island. According to Sean Kass (89), the seaside resorts attracted tourists who mostly came from New York during weekends and holidays. The railroad also ensured that there are smooth travel and movement from one resort hotel to another. By the 19th century, Long Island had emerged as a sporting and recreational destination where cyclists, golf, and tennis players would assemble for competition.
The construction of the six-lane road was pivotal towards the growth of the Long Island. An extensive transport system necessitates the need of development and other transformational changes aimed towards growth and expansion. According to Sylvia Adcock (1), traffic was a hindrance to the long island’s working population. The increase in population prompted more settlers to seek employment opportunities or else engage in other income-earning expenditure such as starting businesses. However, all these are dependent on an extensive transport system that is devoid of traffic congestion. State officials had begun to take notice of the traffic during the 1950s. Engineer Joseph Darcy pointed out that extending highway routes was not a remedy to the escalating traffic congestion. Instead, he proposed the construction of a new express highway to address the traffic menace.
The advent of the new technology was a significant boost to the automobile industry. More long islanders would now afford to buy cars and bring an end to the one-car for each family notion. Robert Moses is given credit as the master builder of the Express Highway that would pass through the middle of the long island and would permit all kind of carriers. The six-lane expressway would stretch a total of 81 miles to cover all of the long islands. However, some queries rose regarding the approach used to negotiate with all those individuals affected by the building of the express highway. This would have acted as a point of resistance if the nimbies raised complaints. Despite the fact that the highway was beneficial, members of the community would have been assessed to validate their gratification with the move. In fact, the state acted out of sheer by masking the voice of those who questioned the building of the highway across their lands without their consent. Complaints ranged from illegal demolition and relocation, a division of some communities and essential social amenities such as schools which were very discommoding.
The benefits of the road surpassed the demerits due to the changes instigated by the six-route highway. The long-awaited highway brought an end to the issue of traffic congestion. Some could even recount how the travel time between New York and the long island reduced to 30 minutes. However, this came at a cost where settlers living near the newly built highway hiked land prices. Unfortunately, this would not deter people from setting up households which to everyone’s dismay extended to the open countryside. According to Sylvia Adcock (2), the population of the area increased by 200% as more people migrated to long island from New York. A 1967 highway study revealed that even the six-route highway would no longer sustain the traffic. Instead, only an 18 lane highway would alleviate such a problem. Some even accused the express highway master builder, Moses, claiming that he ought to have anticipated that the six-lane highway would later on become obsolete. The dwellers are ignorant to blame Moses considering where they would be without the highway.
Levittown has transformed over time where the lives led by the inhabitants had experienced a complex change. Despite the transformations, Geoffrey Mohan (2) claims that the lives currently lived are similar to those of the past. However, some are yet to experience the changes and perceive time as the only transition between their earlier and current lives. These mainly encompass those who were not favored by the development changes that took place during the transformation of the long island. Some are dejected by a newcomer who came to deplete all they had. The natives curse and rebuke the developmental projects that instigated more people to move from New York to the Long Island. The land of opportunities had now turned into a land of limitations that could no longer guarantee the community a productive lifestyle. Instead, they had to struggle to place food on their table and tend to other essential needs.
Modernism has encroached the long island where dwellers work hard, pay taxes and secure mortgages for their children and the succeeding generations. The natives lament their previous lifestyle which barely had no hurdles and life was simple. However, the old and young population surpass the working population. This denotes the dependency ratio and the pressure of the working population to cater to the needs of the dependent population. Long Island has widows who are struggling to raise their children after the death of their husbands. This means that they have to assume the roles of both parents with hope that the children will grow morally and ethically right. This might not always be the case, and some will live to curse the demise of their family’s breadwinner. The financial constraint has become a recurrent issue in every neighborhood. Every widow complains of depleting their social security and pension funds in the quest to cater to the needs of their families. A quarter of Levittown is occupied by single parents which denote a two-fold increase since 1970 (Geoffrey Mohan, 5)
The cost of housing had been gradually increasing in Levittown, but the situation in Nassau has even worsened. The long island is now a Republican stronghold and Nassau County stands out to be political rivals with their neighbor in the west. Most westerners retracted back to New York leaving the easterners to struggle. The judicial and criminal justice system were no longer operational. The Queens Court stood defiantly in the open and prisoners would quickly leave prisons. This means that evil was rooted in the Long Island and the dwellers had already lost hope in life. Security issues such as vandalism and burglary heightened as the number of unemployed individuals continued to rise. Despite collecting taxes, the state government did not deliver according to expectations. They watched as people languished in hunger and other social problems.
Time is a transformative element that defines the outcome of a given based on a set of factors. The long island will be remembered for its smooth and magnificent start but a very dull ending. The Nassau-Suffolk region was initially characterized by fast-growing suburbanization that ensued immediately after the culmination of the second world war. Long Island spearheaded growth in neighboring towns such as Riverhead. However, the latter has had normal growth and development pattern that is entirely based on cheap housing and a growing economy. Riverhead is not dependent on a central business district and places emphasis on the service sector. Long Islands transformation was primarily reliant on the six-lane highway and other development projects such as tourism. However, its proximity to a nearby city made Long Island dependent on New York. However, the inflow of newcomers led to overpopulation despite the working population being less than the aging and young population. The high cost of living aggravated the whole situation and thus transforming the Long Island from a land of opportunities to a land of limitations.
Work Cited
Adcock, Sylvia. “A Link to ‘All of Long Island'”. Newsday.Com, 2016, p. 1-2.
Kass, Sean. “The Long Island Railroad and Its Promotion of Long Island, 1900—1930.” Long Island Historical Journal 17.82: 89-90.
Long Island: Our Story., n.d. Internet resource.
Mohan, Geoffrey. “Nassau’s Difficult Birth”. Newsday.Com, 2016, p. 1-6.
Mohan, Geoffrey. ” Levittown Today”. Newsday.Com, 2016, p. 1-7