State of the Long Island Nonprofit Industry
David Winzelberg //January 22, 2025//
Rendering of Midway Crossing / Courtesy of JLL
County cuts JLL from $2.8M Midway Crossing project, seeks new developers
Rendering of Midway Crossing / Courtesy of JLL
David Winzelberg //January 22, 2025//
Suffolk County has put a fork in the $2.8 million Midway Crossing project that would have created a massive mixed-use development between the Ronkonkoma Long Island Rail Road station and MacArthur Airport.
County officials terminated the master development agreement with JLL Tuesday, citing the Chicago-based company’s lack of progress on the project.
While this version of the project is now dead in the water, the county will restart the process and open up proposals from other developers to reimagine the 179 acres south of the LIRR.
“Today Suffolk County took steps to reimagine the Midway project, paving the way for new ideas and strategies to benefit the surrounding communities, improve infrastructure, and create a powerful economic engine for our county,” Suffolk County spokesman Michael Martino said. “In the coming months, the county will seek expressions of interest from interested parties to ensure this historic project will become a reality.”
A JLL executive that headed the project has yet to respond to a request for comment.
The most recent version of the proposed Midway Crossing development had featured a 300,000-square-foot convention center, about 2 million square feet of office space geared toward life sciences and biotechnology research, a 300-room hotel and more than 300,000 square feet of “destination retail.”
The massive project had been projected to take as long as 15 years to complete all of its four phases, with part of the plan to connect the Ronkonkoma LIRR station to a potential new north terminal at MacArthur Airport via an 1,800-foot walkable pedestrian corridor.
The proposed development would require as much as $1 billion in public funding to be used for building infrastructure and public assets, including water, sewer, utilities and roads, as well as the convention center and airport terminal. The failure of the master developer to garner the necessary public funding was one of the main reasons for the delay and ultimate termination, observers said.
In Oct. 2024, the Town of Islip Industrial Development Agency extended the deadline through Jan. 31 for JLL to come up with at least $100M in state and/or federal funding for the project’s infrastructure in advance of forming a Midway Crossing Local Development Corporation.
Last summer, former New York Islander and NHL Hall of Famer Patrick LaFontaine and a business partner sued development executives after getting iced-out of the proposed public/private project. LaFontaine and Steve D’Iorio filed a lawsuit in New York State Supreme Court against two executives of JLL, claiming the execs received “unjust enrichment” and seeking restitution for services rendered on the project by the plaintiffs. The suit is still pending.
Public stakeholders for Midway Crossing had included Suffolk County, the Town of Islip, New York State and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, while Chicago-based JLL and Cameron Engineering, which merged into Rock Island, Ill.-based IMEG Corp. last year, are joined by Kansas City-based Crawford Architects as private-sector partners.
The Long Island Regional Planning Council designated the Midway Crossing development as a project of regional significance in 2022. The Long Island Association listed the proposed project as one of its policy priorities in 2023 and again this year.
The idea for developing the area between the Ronkonkoma LIRR station and MacArthur came about via a 2017 request for qualifications from the county with input from the Town of Islip. The Suffolk County Legislature voted in June 2018 to approve a memorandum of agreement for redeveloping the site, now mostly used for commuter parking. The county selected the initial JLL plan over other proposals that included between 1,200 and 1,900 units of multifamily residences, office space, a hotel and conference center, and a 2 million-square-foot industrial park.
Share this!
Despite some improvement last month, 2024 was another disappointing year for the area’s housing market.
January 21, 2025
The 25,720-square-foot building is on 2.5 acres.
January 21, 2025
The partnership is aimed at supplying design solutions for commercial spaces.
January 17, 2025
The 13,280-square-foot office building is on 2 acres.
January 17, 2025
The first of 14 planned area locations opens Friday.
January 17, 2025
The new store is expected to open in early spring.
January 16, 2025
Here are some ways changing interest rates can affect your real estate purchases[…]
Decarbonizing building operations and manufacturing requires a transformation in[…]
In capital-intensive industries, growth often hinges on the ability to secure fi[…]
Sign up for your daily digest of Long Island Business News.
Listen to this article Long Island Business News has announced the winners of this year’s 2025 Hea[…]
In following up to our previous In the Lead section focusing on women-owned businesses, we’d like […]
Veterans Day is a significant observance that honors those who have served in the United States Arme[…]
In this special section, “Long Island Business Most Influential Long Islanders, 2024,’ we salute[…]
Listen to this article Long Island Business News has announced this year’s Class of 2024 Hall of F[…]
County officials terminated the master development agreement with JLL Tuesday.
Despite some improvement last month, 2024 was another disappointing year for the area’s housing ma[…]
The 25,720-square-foot building is on 2.5 acres.
The partnership is aimed at supplying design solutions for commercial spaces.
The 13,280-square-foot office building is on 2 acres.
Inked: Recent LI real estate deals
16/1/2025
Herbst: A hopeful road ahead for Long Island
16/1/2025
Cantor: Making NY affordable: an elusive goal for the governor and legislature
16/1/2025
On Our Island: 100-year-old Holocaust survivor honored for bravery, resilience
16/1/2025
The great mall overhaul: LI retail turned inside out
16/1/2025
Our mission at Long Island Business News is to be the vital business news and advertising source to Long Island’s most influential readers.
Get our free LIBN e-alerts & breaking news notifications!
Subscribe for access to the latest digital and special editions.
© 2025 BridgeTower Media. All rights reserved.
Use of this website is subject to its Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy | Do Not Sell My Info/Cookie Policy
