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A downtown staple in Hampton Bays closed its doors for good this week.
Community Market will expand into the drug store's space in Hampton Bays.
Merchandise is packed into the market, but there's still room for a grouping of whimsical statues.
Wednesday morning, December 1, was full of conflicting emotions for shoppers and shopkeepers in the small mall located at 39 West Montauk Highway in Hampton Bays. After more than 30 years, it's the last day for Hampton Liggett Drugs — and the beginning of a new phase for its neighbors at Community Supermarket & Deli.
A handful of customers gathered at the counter in Liggett as pharmacist and owner Mark Hertz fielded phone calls and filled prescriptions. Customers wished him well on his retirement. “I don’t need anything — I’m just here to say goodbye,” one man offered, as another suggested they set up a golf date.
Social media was abuzz with the news the previous day. Facebook users lauded Hertz and colleague James Constantine, plus the store’s staff, as “the best.”
They also complained, however, that their prescriptions would automatically transfer to Rite Aid and expressed shock at the abrupt closure. “We were there yesterday; they didn’t say anything or have a sign up,” one 40-year customer wrote in a Hampton Bays Facebook group.
The reason for the sudden closure may remain a mystery. Hertz refused to speak, citing the need to take care of customers. He refused, also, to talk once the store closes.
Many on social media bemoaned the loss of another mom-and-pop establishment. But as the drug store goes, a family-run market will grow: The hamlet may be losing a mom-and-pop, but it’s gaining a mom, a pop and their three children.
Manager Mary Elis runs her father’s Hampton Bays store. Maximo Nunez has three markets and plans to expand into the Liggett space come January.
“We’re really excited,” Elis enthused, standing near a steam table that’s easily one of the longest on the South Fork. It’s stocked with tray after tray of Spanish dishes, and Elis said that the expansion will bring a bigger steam table, bigger meat department and bigger dairy section.
The market currently caters primarily to a Latin American clientele, but Elis said the family plans to offer a more diverse array of food: “We want to have things from other countries.”
With locations in Riverhead and Flanders, Community Market began as a deli, similar to a Manhattan bodega. The Hampton Bays locale boasts a bodega ambiance, with merchandise stacked to the rafters and a dizzying selection of items. Elis estimated the market had been at the West Montauk Highway location for six or seven years.
“As we started expanding, we would bring in things people would ask us for,” Elis said. “We didn't expect we’d get this big, and we’re really excited.”
The market features breads baked on site and fresh produce. “Everyone says we have the best avocados and the best guacamole,” the store manager said.
