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Seniors petition for new supermarket to fill vacant Waldbaum’s
Speaking to more than two dozen senior citizens gathered outside the now-vacant East Meadow Waldbaum’s on Monday morning, Hempstead Town Councilman Gary Hudes asked how many of them would like to see another supermarket open on the property. Hands quickly shot up, as his listeners exclaimed, “We all do!” and “We need it!”
Susan Giuliani, Selma Forman and Phyllis Napolitano organized the gathering, imploring their neighbors to let local leaders know that they are extremely concerned about the future of the property by signing a petition they crafted. Hudes noted that town officials heard them loud and clear, and that they are trying to contact the property owner while exploring ways to meet seniors’ shopping needs until a new tenant is found.
The Waldbaum’s, at 1530 Front St., closed in November. The chain’s owner, the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, filed for bankruptcy in July. Last fall, all 51 of the company’s grocery stores on Long Island closed.
Unlike dozens of other properties, however, the East Meadow store was not bought by another supermarket chain. On Jan. 6, a federal bankruptcy court judge ordered A&P to return nearly a dozen leases for vacant Long Island Waldbaum’s and Pathmarks that have not been sold to their original landlords. The ruling allows the East Meadow landlord, NW-East Meadow Grocery LLC, to lease the 60,000-plus-square-foot space to new tenants who might not be grocers.
By way of its attorney, the company declined to comment. The property is now listed on Ripco Real Estate’s website as a retail space available for lease.
Hudes said that the property’s owner has not contacted town officials, although he reached out last week. It appears that the property may have been taken over by an out-of-state investment company, he added, saying that he and Supervisor Anthony Santino would find the current owners and speak with them about filling the vacancy.
