Island Park King Kullen moves forward

At its meeting on July 13, the Town of Hempstead Board of Trustees approved a request by Island Park developer John Vitale to rezone property he owns in the southern part of Barnum Island, bringing a proposed King Kullen supermarket one step closer to approval.

The land was previously a mix of zoning designations, including Golden Age, residential and light manufacturing. The town rezoned the entire area — bordered by Austin Boulevard on the west, Baker Court on the north, Petit Place on the east and Waterfront Boulevard on the south — to a business district, the classification required for a King Kullen to be built there.

Vitale owns the southern part of Barnum Island, which includes Jordan's Lobster Farm, Bridgeview Yacht Club, Warehouse 5 and Paddy McGee's. The large, unpaved area that club patrons now use for parking is part of the area that will be developed.

But the approval of the zoning change caused a stir in the community. About 30 residents gathered at the Island Park Library on July 24 to talk about what they could do to try and stop the project from going forward.

"My biggest concern, which always has been my concern, is insufficient parking," said resident Patti Ambrosia. "[Vitale] already has insufficient parking for all his clubs. That's why he has to use that lot."

For his part, Vitale disagrees with the claims that building a shopping center will reduce parking in the area. "That's where the neighbors are mistaken," he said. "There'll be more parking in the neighborhood than ever before."

Vitale plans to pave the entire area, including Beach Avenue. In addition to paving the unpaved lot, his plan calls for additional parking along the Austin Boulevard side of the property. Additionally, Vitale said that some of the small outlying buildings on the property would be torn down to make more room.

"So the overall parking lot that will be provided is more than we have now," he said. "And it'll be lit up, it'll be clean, it'll be striped and paved. So the neighborhood will not only look better, but it'll have more parking — more visible parking — than ever before."