Residents and civic leaders say that conditions at the Lidl supermarket in Franklin Square have deteriorated over the past several years, prompting complaints about cleanliness, maintenance and safety that they say have gone largely unanswered despite repeated outreach to the company and government agencies.
The store, in the Dogwood Avenue shopping center, replaced Best Yet Market after undergoing a full renovation in 2021. Residents initially welcomed the arrival of the discount grocery chain, hoping it would become a long-term community partner.
“We were really excited initially to have Lidl,” resident Eugene Ruppert, who has lived in the community for 32 years, said. “We need a local market in the community. We need one that’ll cater to the needs of the community — someone with a strong commitment.”
Instead, Ruppert said, the store’s condition has steadily worsened over the past three to four years.
“As soon as you walk in the store, you’re looking at floors that are filthy,” he said. “They don’t clean the floor at all.”
Ruppert also described seeing produce left on the floor that he believes creates potential hazards, empty boxes blocking aisles and a bakery area where, he said, customers frequently handle pastries with their hands because tongs are unavailable. He said he had repeatedly contacted Lidl’s corporate office, but had received little more than acknowledgments.
“I’ve called their headquarters. I’ve sent them emails,” Ruppert said. “They’ll say, ‘Oh yeah, we’ll notify the manager.’ … They just don’t bother answering you anymore.”
Morton Civic Association Co-president Domenico Ciaccio said the organization has advocated for improvements since the store opened, and that Lidl representatives initially worked with the civic association to tailor services to neighborhood needs, but that relationship has since deteriorated.
“We thought, ‘OK, good, we’re going to get a nice partner for the neighborhood,’” he said, “[but] the material they used inside the store … is all coming apart.”
Ciaccio said that the civic association regularly receives complaints from residents about expired food, dirty conditions and poor maintenance around the property, but repeated emails to the company have produced little change. “We always get that same generic email back: ‘We’re looking into this,’” he said. “Nothing. Nothing’s done.”
Ciaccio added that the association has contacted the Town of Hempstead, Nassau County and New York state about residents’ concerns. “I know Nassau County was involved, the state was involved, but all of us being involved, nothing has gotten done,” he said. “If anything, the store has gotten worse.”
Residents deserve a cleaner, safer shopping experience, Ciaccio said, but he emphasized that his organization wants the supermarket to remain in Franklin Square, and that its concerns are not anti-business. “Morton Civic is very pro-business,” Ciaccio said. “We love our supermarkets. We support our supermarkets.”
Franklin Square resident Elyse Granik said the shopping center is surrounded by a well-maintained residential neighborhood, and that the supermarket has become an eyesore.
“The previous supermarket … always kept it nice and clean,” Granik said, adding, of Lidl, “From the minute they came in, they were terrible neighbors.” The rear of the property, she said, is frequently cluttered with pallets and other materials that are visible from nearby homes.
Granik said she has contacted Lidl’s customer service numerous times over the past several years. “I emailed them close to 15 times over the years,” she said. “Sometimes they send me, ‘We’re so sorry for the inconvenience. We’re going to escalate this.’ Nothing ever happens.”
She also criticized the conditions inside the store.
“The floor is slimy and gross,” Granik said. “There’s rotten fruits and vegetables all the time. It smells terrible.”
The Herald visited the store on Friday, when it was open and serving customers, and saw damaged flooring throughout the store as well as debris in several aisles, and noted an unpleasant odor in the refrigerated meat section. The Herald did not independently verify residents’ other allegations, including claims regarding expired food or bakery practices.
The Herald contacted Lidl’s corporate media office more than a week before publication, detailing residents’ concerns and requesting comment, but had not received a response by press time.
