Apartment and retail development planned for former Chroma Paint site in Hicksville
An artist's rendering of a residential and retail development planned for the former Chroma Paint site in Hicksville. Credit: Broadway Hicksville Enterprises
The Town of Oyster Bay’s revitalization plan for downtown Hicksville included a rezoning to attract mixed-use residential and commercial projects to replace vacant buildings near the LIRR station.
The efforts a few years back have led to several proposed projects, including one that calls for 30 apartments and retail space at the site of the former Chroma Paint building at 154 Broadway in Hicksville.
"We’re just trying to make a nice project for the community, you know?" said Omar Mahmud, a member of Broadway Hicksville Enterprises Inc., the Amityville-based developer that bought the former Chroma Paint building for $1.7 million in 2015.
The project would include two three-story buildings, one of which would be on West Cherry Street and have 20 apartments. The other building, on Broadway, would have 10 apartments split between the second and third floors, as well as retail space on the first floor and a rooftop restaurant.
Residential units, retail space on the way
More than 450 residential units, along with some retail spaces, are planned or under construction in downtown Hicksville, amid the Town of Oyster Bay's revitalization efforts to attract new developments to the area.
Here is a list of the projects:
99 Newbridge Rd.: A $111 million project, being developed by Manhattan-based Alpine Residential, will include the construction of 189 mixed-income apartments, as well as retail and restaurant space. The project broke ground in November 2023. Tenants are expected to move in this November.
Fieldstone at North Broadway: Woodbury-based P7 Development is behind the $58 million project, to be located between North Broadway, William Street and Newbridge Road. The development will have 104 residential units, as well as retail and restaurant space. Ground was broken in September.
Jerusalem Avenue: Planned for a site with two adjacent properties on Jerusalem Avenue, between Nelson Street and West Marie Avenue, is a $61 million development called Cornerstone Hicksville. Currently, the two properties contain a Bank of America building, which will get a new facade, and a separate structure with a laundromat and deli, which will be demolished. The project will contain 4,000 square feet of retail space and 106 studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments. Farmingdale-based developer Terwilliger & Bartone Properties expects to break ground this year.
47 West Cherry St.: The plan calls for the construction of 10 luxury, three-story townhomes, each with three or four bedrooms, said Jay Singh, who manages construction projects for the Syosset-based developer, Premiero Cherry LLC. The sales prices of the townhomes has not been set yet, he said. Ground will be broken in September or October for the project, which is estimated to cost $15 million to $20 million, he said.
37 West Cherry St.: Premiero Cherry plans to build 20 luxury, one- and two-bedroom apartments across the street from its new townhouse development, Singh said. Monthly rents for most of the apartments will range from $3,500 to $4,500, but three units classified as affordable will cost less than that, he said. Ground was broken on the project in September and construction is expected to be finished in August, Singh said. The development is estimated to cost $12 million to $15 million, he said.
154 Broadway: Planned for the site of the former Chroma Paint building, the development would have two three-story buildings with a total of 30 apartments and commercial space. The building on West Cherry Street would have 20 apartments. The other building, on Broadway, would have 10 apartments, as well as retail space on the first floor and a rooftop restaurant, according to Broadway Hicksville Enterprises Inc., the Amityville-based developer, which hopes to break ground this summer. The proposal is going before the Town of Oyster Bay's Planning Advisory Board on April 16 for a vote.
Source: Town of Oyster Bay, unless otherwise noted
The West Cherry Street building would be 23,095 square feet, while the Broadway building would be 22,676 square feet, said Greg Hoesl, a planner in the Nassau County Department of Public Works. The Town of Oyster Bay sent the plan to the county’s planning commission to review.
The proposal is going before the town’s Planning Advisory Board on April 16 for a vote, said Brian Nevin, spokesman for the town.
Mahmud does not have tenants lined up to lease the commercial space yet, he said. He also said he is unsure of the estimated cost of redeveloping the former Chroma Paint site or what the rent would be for the one- and two-bedroom apartments. The apartments would be a mix of affordable and market-rate units, Mahmud said.
He said he hopes to receive town approval in time to break ground this summer, with construction taking a year.
Broadway Hicksville Enterprises had proposed a smaller apartment project for the former Chroma Paint site several years ago, but Mahmud said the project was paused and then revised after Oyster Bay approved a more favorable rezoning for downtown Hicksville in 2021.
New York State awarded Oyster Bay $10 million in 2017 as part of its Downtown Revitalization Initiative to design and implement projects to help refresh downtown Hicksville.
The town contributed $6 million to the efforts, which also aim to spur economic development, Supervisor Joseph S. Saladino told Newsday on Thursday.
In 2021, the town rezoned Hicksville's downtown to allow mixed-use developments and foster a walkable community anchored by the Long Island Rail Road station.
"We are providing a lot more reasons for people to stay in downtown Hicksville when they get off the train, go to dinner, go shopping, listen to music. ... So, this is all coming together as we envisioned it," Saladino said.
Last year, the town launched a multimillion-dollar project in Hicksville to create pedestrian areas under the railroad trestle and improve walkability surrounding the LIRR station.
A series of privately funded projects, including the proposed redevelopment of the former Chroma Paint site, is slated to bring shopping and hundreds of housing units to the hamlet in the coming years.
More than 450 residential units, along with some retail spaces, have been proposed for town approval or are under construction now in downtown Hicksville, according to Nevin.
Among the new projects planned is a $61 million development, Cornerstone Hicksville, on two adjacent properties on Jerusalem Avenue between Nelson Street and West Marie Avenue.
It will contain 4,000 square feet of retail space and 106 studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments. Farmingdale-based developer Terwilliger & Bartone Properties expects to break ground this year.
Newsday's Joseph Ostapiuk contributed to this story.
Tory N. Parrish covers retail and small business for Newsday. She has worked at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and Observer-Dispatch in Utica, N.Y.
LI nursing homes fined by state, federal health departments The nursing homes were issued 18 citations for serious health and safety violations. NewsdayTV's Macy Egeland sits down with Newsday reporter Robert Brodsky, attorney John Addli, and Michael Balboni to talk more about these findings.
LI nursing homes fined by state, federal health departments The nursing homes were issued 18 citations for serious health and safety violations. NewsdayTV's Macy Egeland sits down with Newsday reporter Robert Brodsky, attorney John Addli, and Michael Balboni to talk more about these findings.
