New Brinkman Hardware Store Proposal on Planning Board Agenda

A proposal by Brinkmann True Value Hardware to build a new store on Railroad Avenue in Sayville is the focus of a public hearing at the Islip Town Planning Board Thursday night.

The longtime Sayville retailer is asking for a zoning change on three adjacent parcels on the west side of Railroad, from current business district and residence B district zoning to all business district zoning.

The proposed building would be 100 percent owner occupied by the family business and feature a 17,000-square foot retail space and 3,000 square foot of office space on the second floor. 

Three dwellings on the lots, located 180 feet north of Swayze Street, would be demolished. The project would require parking, buffer and landscaping relaxations, according to town officials.

Once the store relocates the current hardware and paint store buildings owned by Brinkmann at the corner of Foster Avenue and Montauk Highway would likely be sold.

"We've just outgrown the space we have, we're maxed out on the current property so we began looking for another location and have been working on this for awhile," Ben Brinkmann told Patch in a phone interview Monday.

The new building would be twice as big as the current hardware store, and provide more space for the paint retail business, expanding it to the size of the Blue Point True Value hardware store location, he added. The building would provide 63 parking spaces, compared to the current location's 23.

"If you're not growing, you're dying and we want to keep up with what customers need from our store," said Brinkmann.

The family business has been operating since 1976. In 2003 Brinkmann bought the Blue Point hardware store location and doubled that store's footprint in 2010.

"As the big box stores have expanded we need to expand. We want to provide a one-stop shopping experience for our customers," said Brinkmann.

Planning board public hearings begin at 7:30 p.m. at town hall.