Former Pearl Paint Space Lays Vacant

Empty storefronts are seemingly, and unfortunately, no stranger to East Meadow these days.

Hempstead Turnpike stands as a beacon and main thoroughfare for many in the community. With the tough economy hitting both nationally and locally, it’s no wonder why so many large storefronts, including the old Pearl Paint location, have sat vacant for years.

Located at 1980 Hempstead Turnpike in the East Meadow Plaza shopping center, the store is 30,600 square feet on an 11-acre lot, which features about 450 parking spaces, according to LoopNet.com. Situated in between the Wantagh and Meadowbrook Parkways, this is a well-traveled area of Hempstead Turnpike.

Though a seasonal Halloween store called “Halloween Adventure” occupies the space in the early fall months, the building has been vacant since Pearl Paint moved up Merrick Avenue several years ago. The prime end cap spot is close to , , and many other steadfast and reliable businesses.

“Most of those stores do well, so it is a desirable area," said graduate Emily Ackerman, 22. "There are not a lot of vacancies in that shopping center. That is the only store that has been vacant for a long period of time.”

According to an ad from Prudential Douglas Elliman Real Estate, the company that is leasing out the vacant space, it would be “ideal for [a] pet store, furniture and grocery anchor.”

Many residents have their own opinion on the space and what they think should move into the location.

Kenny Kaufman, an East Meadow resident for 25 years, said he always wonders if the vacancies occur “because the rents are too high.”

“It makes us look like we are heading into a depression,” he said in regards to the vacant storefront. “It is a depressing look and feel to the area. You feel like you should always be able to find some use for the space. I guess people just want to hold onto their land investment.”

He added that he would like to see a bookstore in that location, or one of the many others empty spaces within East Meadow.

“What I want there, because I am always there, is a pet store or a Michael’s,” said Carol Corley, a lifelong East Meadow resident. “We need a Michael’s – it is all the way in Levittown. It will be convenient for the local people that miss Pearl Paint who buy painting and art supplies.”

To increase the appeal of the shopping center, Corley explained, they should consider making all of the store’s signs similar for a sense of uniformity.

Ackerman added that she would like a chain restaurant in the space because “there are none at all over there.”

While massive units in other areas have broken down the space into multiple stores, this location has not. Kaufman questions whether the company that takes care of the building should break it down into several spaces for smaller businesses to occupy. But, he added, "that is a cost in itself to break down the building."

Kaufman said that the state of empty stores in East Meadow is “getting worse and worse."

“Vacancies definitely have increased," he continued. "It is a small domino effect.”

East Meadow Patch will regularly spotlight vacant commercial properties in effort to initiate a discussion within the community about alternative uses for these abandoned places. If you'd like to know more about a specific property, please comment below.