By:Anthony Rifilato
Waldbaum's is looking to expand, not only because the store is old and in need of an upgrade, representatives said, but also because it wants to remain competitive with more modern supermarkets in order to service more customers from Baldwin and nearby towns such as Oceanside and Freeport.
"The store is quite old and substandard," said Michael Sahn, an attorney representing APW Supermarket Inc., the company that owns Waldbaum's. "Most stores are large enough to offer more goods and services."
There was no opposition to the proposal last week at a Town of Hempstead board meeting, where representatives of APW filed an application to rezone two residential properties owned by the company on Grand Boulevard and Church Street to a business district.
Two vacant, boarded-up homes on the properties, which total 25,000 square feet, would be demolished to make way for the store expansion. Waldbaum's would be expanded an additional 10,880 square feet from its current 31,000-square-foot space, and the project would also include landscaping and additional parking. The store is also seeking to operate 24 hours a day from Monday through Saturday, with limited hours on Sunday.
Sahn, along with experts and engineers, detailed for the board the project's impact on the community, saying that the store would be expanded to the west, just behind a row of residential homes on Grand Boulevard.
If the application to rezone is approved, APW will refurbish the entire shopping center, a project that Sahn said could be completed in a year, though it would require more building proposals, applications and town approvals. "This is the first step," said Sahn.
He noted that if the application to rezone is denied, APW would abandon plans to upgrade Waldbaum's, saying that it would not make sense financially due to a lack of space, among other factors.
If approved, the project would include landscaping consisting of flowers and shrubbery and a larger, 24-foot entrance on Grand Boulevard. The project also would include a renovated and enlarged parking lot. Many have said the current lot is poorly configured, dilapidated and prone to flooding. Seventeen new parking spaces would be added to the existing 266.
Once Waldbaum's was renovated, APW would proceed to upgrade the entire shopping center in cooperation with the landlord. "The way the shopping center looks now," said Sahn, "will be entirely different."
He said that the stark white look of the shopping center would be drastically changed. At Waldbaum's, the project would include a new front entrance and sign, more windows, repaved walkways, brick columns, and a gray, soft-cranberry color. Eventually, the entire shopping center would receive a similar facelift. "It would have a much more classic look to it than the existing stark white," said Sahn.
This is not the first time the store has attempted to expand and enhance its image. A similar application was filed in 2000 but withdrawn. "It was withdrawn at that time because they were not able to revise the plans and make a sufficient agreement with the neighbors," said Sahn, adding that residents were concerned about the size of the project and its impact on the neighborhood.
But now, Sahn said, the company is going forward with a revamped and more appealing plan that would include more landscaping in order to make the project become a reality. "We came up with a better plan," he said, "to accommodate the neighbors and not negatively impact on them."
But Waldbaum's has been the subject of contention among some residents near Church Street. A number have argued in the past that truck deliveries to Waldbaum's on Church Street, as well as traffic generated from Rose Fence, has become a major quality-of-life issue in the area.
At the meeting, Town Councilman Anthony Santino asked if the project would affect the loading docks and traffic at the rear of the store on Church Street. Sahn and others said that there would be no change on Church Street or to the deliveries that are made there.
But Santino requested that certain restrictive covenants be placed on the application that Waldbaum's would have to abide by, which the company agreed to do. These would include ensuring that deliveries onto Church Street be made at reasonable hours, especially since Waldbaum's would be a 24-hour operation. "We don't want to see [deliveries] happening at 3 a.m.," said Santino.
Afterward, Santino explained that while the application seems solid and the project could be a boon to the local business community, the board is concerned about protecting the surrounding neighborhood.
Several customers and employees have lauded the plan, saying it would be good for business and the community, and the project has the support of the Baldwin Chamber of Commerce, which said that it is hoping the enhanced shopping center improves the community's commercial climate. "We've been working so hard to encourage beautification in the community," said Chamber President Doris Duffy. "It would be great if our Waldbaum's can look as good as others."
While many agree that the shopping center could give the area a needed boost, some residents of Grand Boulevard expressed ambivalence over the project's impact on the surrounding neighborhood, particularly Grand Boulevard between Atlantic and Church Street.
Debra and Joseph Montalbano, the only residents to attend last week's meeting, live next door to the home that would be demolished to make way for the store. Their property would be just feet away from the redesigned 24-foot entrance and exit from Grand Boulevard, and they expressed concern about the traffic flow.
Despite those concerns, the Montalbanos and some others came to an agreement with the planners after they were assured that the expanded store would not negatively impact their lives. "I have mixed feelings about it," said Debra Montalbano, who added that because of the agreement she could not provide too many details. "[The proposal] looks good and sounds good, but is it going to be OK?"
