Month: May 2016

First CarMax dealer in region could be coming to St. James

1 newsday

CarMax is asking Smithtown Town to rezone property at the northwest corner of Middle Country Road and Montclair Avenue in St. James to allow a used-car dealership. This is from May 13, 2016. (Credit: James Carbone) An application under consideration by the Smithtown Town Board to rezone an 18-acre parcel at Middle Country Road and Montclair Avenue could bring the first local branch of a national used-car dealership to St. James.

The parcel, currently used by manufacturer Smithtown Concrete, is zoned for light industrial. Richmond, Virginia-based CarMax is seeking to rezone the site to wholesale and service industry in order to build its dealership. “CarMax identifies areas that reach customers not currently served by our unique and stress-free shopping experience and has identified the St. James area as being a good fit for our current growth plan,” said spokeswoman Lindsey Duke in an email.

CarMax has about 160 dealerships nationally and has plans to grow at a pace of about 13 to 16 new locations annually, though building a new store may take up to two or three years, Duke said. The Smithtown Town Planning Department and the town planning board have both recommended approving the CarMax application subject to conditions such as providing vehicular access to the traffic signal at Highway Place, preventing access to residential Browning Street, and filing a covenant limiting the use of the site to a motor vehicle showroom.

The Smithtown Town Board is expected to hold a public hearing on the application at its June 23 meeting. Smithtown Planning Director David Flynn noted in a memo to the planning board that the site “is in a suitable location for the proposed use” with “good access in that it fronts on a primary arterial highway with potential access to a traffic signal.” Flynn also said the application seems to fit in the area, where numerous car dealerships line Middle Country Road. “There isn’t a lot of demand for [light industry] use in that part of the town, and CarMax fits in with the other uses in the area,” he said in a phone interview,

In 2014, a developer proposed building a 260-unit, four-story apartment complex at the site, but pulled the plan after public concerns about traffic, the project’s scale and safety. Resident Joanne Rooney, who lives in the Fifty Acre Glenn section of St. James and who attended the town planning board hearing in March on the application, said she supports the CarMax project. “I think it’s a good proposal for the site. They were originally going to build apartment complexes and they were going to encroach onto our development,” she said. “CarMax was very good with me and knew the concerns of the community.” She added, “They’re as good a neighbor as the other dealerships. If I was against car dealerships, I couldn’t live in the area.”

Sleepy’s owner plans layoffs, will keep warehouse, office on LI

Sleepy's

The new owner of mattress retailer Sleepy’s plans to keep open its large office and warehouse in Hicksville, though some employees there have been told they will be laid off, a top executive said on Monday, May 16, 2016. (Credit: Howard Schnapp)

The new owner of mattress retailer Sleepy’s plans to keep open its large office and warehouse in Hicksville, though some employees there have been told they will be laid off, a top executive said.

Adam Blank, president of Sleepy’s, said, “While there will be some natural job loss due to the acquisition, we have made a number of long-term employment offers working out of the Hicksville office, with more on the horizon.” He added, “We are actively hiring new employees to work out of the Hicksville corporate office.” He did not provide numbers, in terms of those losing jobs and those being hired.

The mattress chain had 636 employees at the 450,000-square-foot Hicksville office and warehouse last year, according to a report from Empire State Development, the state’s primary business-aid agency. ESD provided a $1.5 million grant to Sleepy’s in 2010 to support the Hicksville facility. In February, Mattress Firm Holding Corp. of Houston announced plans to purchase Sleepy’s for $780 million. The deal has since closed. “Mattress Firm and Sleepy’s have no intention of closing the New York corporate headquarters and warehouse in Hicksville,” Blank said in a statement last week. “We have a long-term lease on the facility and will continue to make deliveries from the Hicksville facility supporting our store locations from New York City to Montauk.”

He also said the workers being laid off would be notified “with ample time” and that the company would provide a severance package and job placement services. Sleepy’s, founded 84 years ago, has about 3,400 employees, including those at its stores.

Inked: Recent Long Island Real Estate Deals

inked

201 Old Country Road, Melville

CurvePay, a payment processing company, leased 6,800 square feet of office space at 201 Old Country Road in Melville. Phil Shwom of Schacker Realty represented the tenant while Scott Berfas, Dan Oliver and Jordan Oliver of Newmark Grubb Knight Frank represented landlord 201 Metro in the lease negotiations.

55 West Ames St., Plainview

Central Nassau Guidance and Counseling Services, a provider of health services, counseling and guidance, leased about 22,000 square feet at 55 West Ames St. in Plainview. Jason Miller and Jeffrey Schwartzberg of Premier Commercial Real Estate represented the tenant, while David Hunt of Hunt Corporate Services represented landlord 55 Ames Court LLC in the lease transaction.

140 Eileen Way, Syosset

PPT, a provider of physical therapy services, leased 3,000 square feet at 140 Eileen Way in Syosset. Jatinda Singh of
La Rosa Realty New York represented the tenant, while Jeffrey Schwartzberg and Jason Miller of Premier
Commercial Real Estate represented landlord 3G Eileen Way LLC in the lease negotiations.

55 Kennedy Drive, Hauppauge

Home Bay Trading, a discount-store wholesaler, bought a 111,000-square-foot building on 5.6 acres at 55 Kennedy
Drive for $8.2 million. The company is relocating from Brooklyn and was assisted with economic incentives from the
Suffolk County Industrial Development Agency. Scott Berfas and Jack O’Connor of Newmark Grubb Knight Frank
represented the buyer and the seller, 55 Kennedy Drive Realty, in the sales transaction.