A proposal that could change the Village of Hempstead into the City of Hempstead is being debated.

Hempstead Village Mayor Waylyn Hobbs Jr. says the move would help stimulate growth and development in the community.

He says business is booming at the village's car dealerships, but a lot of the sales tax revenue gets siphoned off by the town.

"It's difficult to set your budget, have a balanced budget, when again, you're only getting a small percentage of the sales tax that we should get," Hobbs Jr. says.

He says this could be solved by turning the village into a city.

That way, more tax dollars could be invested into the community's infrastructure and services.

The mayor hopes that will also bring in new residents.

"Hempstead will attract those young professionals, then that will bring life to our business community, more revenue, more shopping, more foot traffic," Hobbs Jr. says.

Not everyone agrees with Hobbs Jr.'s plan.

Carlos Ortega, who has lived in Hempstead for nearly 40 years, wants Hempstead to stay the way it is.

He's concerned that it will be more crowded and not feel like a residential area anymore.

Hobbs Jr. says that they want to keep the "suburb feel" of the village, while getting the benefits of being a city.

"When we're able to have more revenue, that takes away the burden," Hobbs Jr. says. "That means your taxes are going down."

The Village of Hempstead has just formed a committee to come up with a charter.

Public hearings could be seen by the end of the summer, and after that approval would be needed from the state legislature and the governor.

If that happens, it would be the first time a new city came to Long Island in a century.