Streetscaping Work Under Way in Huntington Station

The new Huntington Station Food Plaza supermarket is set to open its doors Friday morning, members of the town’s Economic Development Corp. were told at Tuesday’s meeting.

Xavier Tineo, the son of the business owner who will manage the store, told the board the grocery is his family’s first store on Long Island. Along with a full line of groceries, the store will offer hot, cooked foods, an international aisle, organic meat and fruit, rotisserie chickens, flowers and Carvel ice cream cakes, as well as Lotto and MoneyGram. It plans to employ 35 people.

Hours will be from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday to Saturday and from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sundays at the store on New York Avenue. The store also will offer delivery service once it settles into its new site, he said. Their delivery service has a twist, though – Tineo said workers will pick up shoppers, take them  to the store to shop, and then take them home.

Tineo said his family has gutted and rebuilt the 20,000-square-foot building since they purchased it two years ago from a family friend, adding new wiring and a new roof and doing landscaping and other work. “We’ve put our heart and soul into that business,” he said. “Everything is brand new.” It is one of their biggest stores. They also own two C-Town stores in Brooklyn and one in Queens, he said.

“This is a milestone because we’ve been waiting for a supermarket in Huntington Station,” said, EDC director.

A ribbon cutting is scheduled for 11 a.m. Friday.

Board members approved spending $2,200 for an appraisal of a parcel at Northridge Street and New York Avenue. A previous EDC development plan for a community center atop a private first-floor business there was withdrawn when economic conditions soured and no developers were interested in the site.

They also approved a grant of $5,000 to (LI-CAN) toward completion of projects at the Gateway Garden community garden, including building more raised beds to accommodate people on its waiting list and to create a shaded area for children's activities.

The board got updates on several EDC projects before it went into executive session to hear a feasibility study from McLean Associates for costs and work involved in adapting a recharge basin on Church Street to a bird sanctuary or another passive park-like use.

* Demolition work is done on the old garage at 1000 New York Avenue, Cergol said, and 12 developers attended a conference about the EDC’s proposal for new projects on March 25. Questions from developers are due Friday, the town has two weeks to answer them, and final proposals are due May 25.

* Streetscape improvements started March 28 on sidewalks along New York Avenue running from Jonny D’s Pizzeria to Pulaski Road. Planned work of decorative lighting and brick sidewalks as well as crosswalks on New York Avenue also includes rebuilding a retaining wall by the train station. When previous streetscaping work was done the project ended well ahead of schedule, and Cergol said she expects this work to finish early as well, in June, although the contract allows for six months.

* Ownership of the road – town or state – in front of the proposed pedestrian plaza at Olive Street and New York Avenue is still undetermined, Cergol said, although the EDC still hopes to send out engineering plans and build the plaza this year.

* The Station Sports Family Recreation Center proposal for land on Depot Road that formerly housed a day laborer site is scheduled to go before the town’s Zoning Board of Appeals on Thursday for two variances. It needs permission to open a game center within 200 feet of a library and to use 18 municipal parking spots to meet parking needs. Members discussed possibly attending the zoning board meeting to indicate their support for the proposal by Brad Rosen. The town Planning Board also has indicated its support. Rosen hopes to open the rec center’s batting cages and miniature golf course this summer if variances are granted and work can be completed.

Note: This story was updated April 7 to correct the date final proposals are due on developing 1000 New York Avenue.