By JUDY RATTNER
Amid the economic uncertainty, it seems that a number of local entrepreneurs are betting on the village. In recent months, Rockville Centre has seen a flurry of new businesses opening or announcing plans to. Others have relocated, and still others are digging in their roots and sprucing up.
Among the businesses that have opened in recent months are Blossom Nails and Spa, at 39 S. Park Ave.; RVC Surf Shop, at 15 N. Village Ave.; Pavone, a women's boutique, at 248 Sunrise Highway; Milk & Honey, another women's boutique, at 232 Merrick Road; Park Ave. Delicatessen, at 278 Merrick Road; BBQ Inc., at 12 S. Park Ave.; The Body Shop, at 11 N. Village Ave., and Village Physical Therapy., at 235 Merrick Road. LAN labs, a new computer store, is scheduled to open, as is Dolphin Fitness, at 279 Sunrise Highway. "Personally, I'm ecstatic - I think it's great," said Rockville Centre building department Superintendent Dan Cassella. "Yes, there are associated fees, and if the buildings are in compliance with the code and the occupants are safe, that's my objective. We're currently doing another vacancy study of empty stores throughout the village, and I'm hoping the vacancy rate will have dropped."
Two village mainstays - Bialystok and Bloom, and Able Ford - recently relocated, one within the village and the other out of town. Bialystok, a retail gourmet and catering eatery that has operated in the village since 1987, has moved around the corner from its original site, to newly renovated digs on the corner of Clinton and College Place.
Reopening several weeks later than planned, owner Rahul Handa expressed concern about the 90-day conditional certificate of occupancy his store received from the village. Cassella explained that Handa received an approved building permit and that he will need to move the kitchen exhaust system - which is visible from the outside of the building - inside, and vent it through the ceiling of an apartment above the store.
Village officials say they don't know what will be next for the showroom and lot on the corner of Long Beach Road and Merrick Avenue that was occupied by Able Ford for 35 years. Customers have been referred to "Country Able Ford" in Levittown, and will now find Able Ford in Old Bridge, N.J. "The village is unaware of what will be next ... [there are] no building permit applications, nothing proposed at this juncture," said Cassella.
Wild Ginger, an Asian restaurant slated for the space long under renovation at 424 Sunrise Highway, on the corner of Forest Avenue - the site of what was once Donato's and later Michael's - has a work permit from the village, but seems to be in limbo. "I have not been notified and I have no reason to believe that they are not going to go through with the work," said Cassella. "There were 'For lease' and 'For rent' signs on the fence which are no longer there. They were taken down."
According to Handoko Susanto, manager of the Wild Ginger in Great Neck, work is proceeding on the Rockville Centre site, and the restaurant's owner still plans to open as soon as possible.
Also under way is renovation work on the facade of the Sleepy's building on Sunrise Highway, which will be the subject of an exterior design review at an upcoming village board meeting. Workers are currently taking down the building's old stucco. There is also construction at the PC Richard store on Sunrise Highway, which is expanding. And 43 N. Village Ave., the building under renovation that required emergency intervention by the village last spring, when it appeared structurally unsound, is undergoing alterations to its facade, with "monitored, controlled inspections," according to Cassella. Meanwhile, 205-207 Sunrise Highway, a couple of stores past Sleepy's, will also see repairs to its facade; scaffolds are already in place.
LRS Gallery, on North Park Avenue, and Brennan and Carr, an eatery on North Village Avenue, have closed, both attributing their demise to the faltering economy. Riches, the former site of Sweet Zone, on South Village Avenue, and Mav's Deli, also on South Park, recently shut their doors as well. This may be a sign of what is coming, if an ominous analysis in BusinessWeek late last month is to be believed: Rockville Centre has made the magazine's list of "Towns That Could Be Hit Hardest by the Financial Crisis."
In a Sept. 25 article, the village was ranked No. 19 on a list of towns vulnerable to an economic meltdown. All are considered to be at risk due to the percentage of residents who were employed in finance, insurance, real estate and leasing in 2007. Garden City (No. 6) and New York City (No. 1) also made the list.
Reacting to the story, Mayor Mary Bossart said, "It is disturbing to be on a list that simply evaluates how many residents work in particular industries, because it provides no context. While many residents work for large firms, other are entrepreneurs, and the impacts will be different.
"Rockville Centre has had good times and great times," Bossart added. "It's a wonderful community which has, and continues to attract new residents and businesses. We, and all of the country, are in a serious situation now, but I know Rockville Centre will have great times again."
Comments about this story? RVCeditor@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 208.
