Community Impact

Jehovah’s Witnesses aim to be good neighbors at each of the 43 Assembly Halls they maintain across the United States. These centers for Bible education hold weekend programs that feature talks, video presentations, and association with fellow worshippers; the events do not include knocking on doors in the surrounding community. The Long Island Assembly Hall will have 2,100 seats but will have an average attendance of 1,450.

When considering the proposed use of the site, it will result in a reduction of traffic on weekdays compared with the prior use patterns of the property as a commercial facility. Trained volunteers will help direct parking on weekends when there is a program at the Assembly Hall to maintain safe ingress and egress. A traffic study commissioned for the project from consulting firm Nelson + Pope determined that “construction of the proposed facility will not result in an adverse traffic impact at the study intersections and the surrounding roadways.”

Construction is anticipated to bring a direct economic benefit to Nassau County through locally purchased building materials and design and engineering services used by the volunteer labor force. Visitors and operations of the Long Island Assembly Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses will also bring a substantial ongoing economic influx to the Nassau County community, according to a community impact analysis commissioned from consulting firm BBC Research & Consulting. It concluded, “Over several decades, the impacts of the Assembly Halls’ operation will contribute hundreds of millions of dollars to Nassau County’s economy and sustain hundreds of jobs.”