Bellport residents will once again have a local grocery store, ending a gap in access to fresh food that began when Cirillo’s Market IGA closed in 2023.
A new Fine Fare supermarket is expected to open in late summer on South Country Road, the longtime home of several Bellport grocery stores dating back to the 1960s. The new market will be owned by Suffolk grocer William Lukeman and two business partners, who also operate Fine Fare locations in Copiague, Riverhead, Farmingville and Brentwood.
The Bellport location will be the smallest of the group’s six stores, measuring about 8,500 square feet, but plans call for a full-service deli and butcher department, fresh produce, dairy products, frozen foods, dry goods, a juice bar and prepared hot foods.
The store is taking longer than usual to complete because much of the equipment is being custom-built to maximize the smaller footprint and increase product variety inside the building, the owners say.
The return of a grocery store is significant for Bellport residents who have gone without a local supermarket since the closure of Cirillo’s. The nearest major supermarket is nearly four miles away in Medford, creating challenges for residents without reliable transportation.
The issue mirrors concerns raised in other Long Island communities facing so-called “food deserts,” where residents have limited nearby access to fresh groceries. Similar concerns surfaced recently in Middle Island after the closure of a longtime King Kullen supermarket left residents scrambling for alternatives before Giunta’s Meat Farms announced plans to move into the vacant space.
The Bellport property owner, Staller Associates of Islandia, said the former Cirillo’s site could have been leased sooner, but community leaders pushed to ensure another grocery store returned to the location rather than a different type of business.
The building also houses a CVS pharmacy. Over the decades, the site has been home to Bohack, Gristedes and Cirillo’s supermarkets, making it one of Bellport Village’s longtime retail anchors.
Fine Fare Bellport is expected to open with approximately 45 employees, most of them full-time workers.