By Kathianne Boniello
Shoppers and community members had mixed reactions this week to the announcement that the Grand Union supermarket in Little Neck would be closing.
The supermarket sits at the intersection of Marathon Parkway and Northern Boulevard has a large parking lot and is the only such store in the Little Neck/Douglaston Manor/Douglaston Hill communities.
A spokeswoman for Grand Union said there was no specific date scheduled for the store's closing. Spokeswoman Sue Marsh also would not confirm how long the store has been in the community or whom the property was sold to.
A spokesman for Borough President Claire Shulman's office did not return calls for comment.
In March the store was named in a citywide survey by state Assemblyman Jeffrey Klein's (D-Bronx) office as one of the dirtiest supermarkets. Most shoppers said Monday they have had no problem with the store's cleanliness since then.
Marsh said the store was being closed because “it was not meeting our expectations in moneymaking. It was not a profitable location for us.”
Community Board 11 Chairman Bernie Haber, who lives in Douglaston, said the closing of Grand Union “is going to be a problem.”
Haber also said there was “no question” that the area needed another supermarket in that location.
“There's nothing else in the Northeast,” he said. “Nothing else north of the LIE.”
Shopper Richard Farrell of Douglaston agreed.
“I hope they have another market here,” said Farrell, who has lived in Douglaston for more than 30 years. “It's the closest game in town.”
The other nearest supermarkets are two Waldbaums – one in the Bay Terrace Shopping Center and the other in the Douglaston Plaza Shopping Center off of the Long Island Expressway.
Ben Rothstein of Bayside said he did not mind the closing of Grand Union, which he described as having a confusing layout and discourteous staff. He said the closing was “no big loss,” but he did emphasize the need for another supermarket in the area.
Sophia Saridakis of Little Neck said Grand Union's location in the community was ideal for a supermarket.
“This is such a central location,” she said as she shuffled her grocery bags. “There's a big need for a supermarket here.”
