A developer is asking Suffolk for millions in tax breaks to build an apartment complex in Nesconset, but some residents say the project will cause more harm than good to the community.

The Preserves at Smithtown is a proposed 180-unit apartment for residents 55 and over. It would be built on 24 acres of unused land on Smithtown Boulevard in Nesconset.

Phyllis Hart, of the We Are Nesconset Civic Association, says she's worried about the environmental impact to the area. She says so much has changed since permits for the project were granted in the 90s.

“The population has grown, there is a lot more waste into the environment than there was back in the 90s, the population has grown,” says Hart.

Resident Patty Stoddard also says the apartments would create more congestion on the roads in the area.

However, the main concern among residents is that the $7.5 million tax break the developer is asking for would come out of their pockets.

Residents who are against the apartment complex say they would like to see the property used for something else. One suggestion they have is to build single-family houses instead.

Developer Jim Tsunis, with Northwind Group, says the complex will be built with "state-of-the-art sewage treatment."

He tells News 12, "We will continue to work with community members and be sensitive to their concerns."

Some residents are in favor of the apartment project. They say it will draw more people to the local businesses, and that unused land as it is does nothing for the local economy.

The Nesconset Civic Association says if the developer gets the tax break, the construction would begin immediately and finish in 2021

The project developer held an informational meeting for the public Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the Cleary School on Smithtown Boulevard.