Exploring the Villages in the Town of North Hempstead, Long Island through Digital Maps

By Mitchell M. Schwartz, May 2023

Created for GEOG 159, Hofstra University

Map 1: 2020 Population Map 2: Does the Village Operate its Own Police, Fire, or Water District(s)?

Map 3: Does the Village Have its 2022-23 Budget and Codebook on its Website?

Data Table

There are 31 incorporated villages within the Town of North Hempstead. Each of these villages operate independently from the Town, which is seated in Manhasset.

All villages in New York State are granted a large set of powers through the Municipal Home Rule Law and the Village Law – and, more generally, through the New York State Constitution. They are able to govern themselves independently from the town(s) which they are located in.

This means that villages can set their own laws and zoning ordinances, and can offer better, locally-maintained services and infrastructure for its residents (such as village police departments, village parks, and locally-maintained roads, sewers, garbage collection, et cetera) –largely paid for through village taxes and are often exclusive to the given village.

Some villages, however, are less transparent than others – and while many village governments are accountable, transparent, and follow all proper procedures (such as posting Board of Trustees minutes on the official website in a reasonable amount of time, if the given village has a website and an adequate internet connection), others do not and/or are shrouded in secrecy.

These maps and the associated data table explore select statistics from each of the 31 villages in the Town of North Hempstead – from population and mayoral salaries all the way to whether the given village posts its Board of Trustees meeting minutes online, per the Open Meetings Law of the State of New York. They aim to make local government more understandable, more accessible, more transparent, and more accountable.