A 2010s-vintage view of the North Wing. The Astoria bank (seen in the early 2000s photos) is still in operation.
Photo from www.kabro.com / Kabro Associates
The entrance of the Best Market grocery is seen on the right side of this image. The store closed for good in early 2021.
Photo from www.kabro.com / Kabro Associates
Our final GARDENS AT GREAT NECK snapshot shows the West Wing. Nameplates for Chipotle Mexican Grill, Cheeburger Cheeburger and Wild Ginger (an Asian Fusion restaurant) appear on the left.
Photo from www.kabro.com / Kabro AssociatesNORTH SHORE SHOPPING MART
South Middle Neck and Great Neck Roads
Nassau County (Town of North Hempstead), New York
Greater New York City's first suburban-style shopping center was constructed on a 7-acre parcel, located 13.4 miles east of Times Square. The site, once part of the Grace Estate, was in Nassau County's Town of North Hempstead / Village of Great Neck Plaza. Ground was broken for the NORTH SHORE SHOPPING MART in June 1950. The open-air strip complex was developed by New York City's Sol G. Atlas and designed by Lathrop Douglass. It encompassed approximately 216,500 leasable square feet.
NORTH SHORE SHOPPING MART was anchored by a 3-level (60,000 square foot), Philadelphia-based John Wanamaker, which was the chain's first suburban New York City location. This store opened for business on May 16, 1951 and featured a huge, 2-story show window and two elevators; quite impressive features at the time.
SHOPPING MART stores included Millers apparel, Pennsylvania Drugs, Miles Shoes, The Corsetorium, North Shore Hardware, Godell's of Great Neck home furnishings, a (10,500 square foot) Grand Union supermarket and 2-level (15,600 square foot) F.W. Woolworth 5 & 10. The parking area accommodated 500 autos.
Wanamaker's Great Neck was short-lived. The store was shuttered on May 3, 1955. Its ground level was expanded into vacant store space on both sides. The 3-level (71,000 square foot) Stern's Great Neck was dedicated on September 2, 1955. This was the chain's first suburban branch. The store morphed into a New York City-based Gertz on April 1, 1961, which shut down in January 1980.
By the early 1990s, the strip center was 85-percent vacant. It was acquired by Woodbury, New York's Kabro Associates in August 1993. The exterior was completely refurbished, new stores were signed and the complex re-named THE GARDENS AT GREAT NECK PLAZA.
The old John Wanamaker was expanded into adjacent space once again. A 1-level (43,000 square foot) Iselin, New Jersey-based Foodtown Superstore opened in April 1994. Existing tenants included Pathmark Drug (in the old Grand Union space), Astoria Federal Savings & Loan and the Great Neck Library Station Branch. Newly-signed tenants included Kay-Bee Toys, Dreyfuss Financial Center and the (26,000 square foot) New York Health & Racket Club.
Foodtown was rebranded as an Edward's Super Food in 1995. This morphed into a Montvale, New Jersey-based Waldbaum's on March 3, 2001. This store was shuttered on November 22, 2015 and re-opened, as a Bethpage, New York-based Best Market, on February 10, 2016. Best Market pulled up stakes in February 2021. Meanwhile, The New York Health & Racket Club had closed in September 2013 and re-opened, as a Planet Fitness gym, on June 17, 2014.
Sources:
The New York Daily News
The Nassau Daily Review-Star (Freeport, New York)
"Great Neck Plaza Walking Tour" / Long Island Traditions / Nancy Solomon
Nassau County, New York property tax assessor website
https://theislandnow.com
https://www.kabro.com / Kabro Associates
https://greatneckrecord.com
"Great Neck Plaza" article on Wikipedia
BLACK & WHITE PHOTOS:
From the Gottscho-Schleisner Collection / Repository: United States Library Of Congress Prints and Photograph Division, Washington, D.C. / Taken by Gottscho-Schleisner, Inc., 1952 / Photographs are in the public domain: no known restrictions on publication / www.loc.gov/rr/print/catalog.html
