Milleridge sale complicates fair’s fate
Nestled in a nook behind the historic Milleridge Inn is its fabled Milleridge Village, an eclectic collection of shops and craft vendors that features a charming vibe recalling a calm, quaint New England village—a refreshing respite from the hustle and bustle of North Broadway in Jericho.
And, unfortunately, after having existed since roughly the 1950s, it is running the risk of disappearing forever within the next few months.
The Milleridge Inn was sold to developer Kimco Realty this past May and the prevailing rumors circulating amongst locals point to the venue’s possible permanent closure when the Milleridge’s owners retire at the end of the year. Though recent comments from Kimco reveal that all hope is not lost for the Inn, the village’s fate is far more unknown and many locals worry that commercial interests will see it turned into an office building or retail store.
The village’s brick walkways lead to a serene area lined by a community made up of shops, with construction recalling colonial-era America. Staffed by Milleridge Inn employees, they peddle anything from ice cream to Irish and Christmas gifts to toys and baked goods. The shops themselves are lined outside by tables set up by 10-20 vendors at any given time selling lovely handmade wares and live music often accompanies the festivities as well. Visitors truly feel as though they have stepped back into a distant, far simpler time when they enter Milleridge Village.
Jennifer Avallone of Farmingdale runs JGA Creations, a craft fair event production company. She began as a vendor at Milleridge Village, but soon was brought on to run the entire outdoor craft fair as of April 2013. The fair’s season, much like the village’s, runs from spring through fall and over the years the vendors and visitors of the village have formed a tight little community. Avallone said that she was genuinely upset by the idea that this might be their last time together.
“It’s a different event than anything else that you’d find on Long Island. We’ve all been together for a while now and we’re all really sad that it’s almost done. Some of the vendors were actually crying today,” she said. “As far as we know, it’s up to Kimco. At the moment, our last official date is Oct. 25 and as far as we know, that’s it for the craft fair and possibly Milleridge Village itself as well. We’re looking for an alternate location to hold our annual fairs, but no other location is like this.”
Janet Rogers of Uniondale and Carol Wright of Freeport are sisters and school teachers who rarely get to see each other during the school year. What time they spend together is during the summer recess months while making autumn-themed crafts by hand to sell at the Milleridge Village.
“I was crying earlier today. It’s such a wonderful place and my sister and I have so many memories here,” Wright said. “When my granddaughter comes to visit, I would bring her here for ice cream and now it’s going to be gone and probably some office building that we don’t need is going to be here instead.”
East Meadow resident Lauren Skelly is a ceramic artist and a new addition to the craft fairs collection of vendors. She is also a long-time regular attendee of Milleridge Village and said that some of her happiest recollections are of enjoying peppermint ice cream while window shopping with her mother.
“This is a childhood memory for me and an important landmark for Long Island,” she said. “I’ve been coming here since my first day of kindergarten. It’s been a big family place for me and my cousins since I was little and I’m heartbroken that it may no longer exist in the coming months. It’s a great place to bring friends from out of town to show them that Long Island isn’t all strip malls, that we have beautiful landmarks like this as well.”
“We’ve celebrated so many things here; family parties, luncheons after family sadness and I even celebrated my 25th wedding anniversary here,” said Skelly’s mother, Evelyn. ”We especially loved coming to buy all the lovely decorations that the Christmas store sells for our tree. It was always a treat to come and we’ve always been so happy that it was here. We’re so sad to think that it may not be around anymore. It’s a little gem.”
Tim Fisher has been playing his guitar at the Milleridge Village almost every Sunday it has been open for the past three years. He has plans to move to Florida in the next few months and had noticeable tears welling in his eyes when talking about his time playing for the enjoyment of passersby, especially in light of the possibility that the village he has come to love so dearly may be no more.
“Kimco had a meeting at the Hicksville Knights of Columbus recently and they said that they’d like to continue to operate the restaurant, but they wouldn’t confirm or deny that they would keep the village open,” he said. “I’ve really felt like a part of a family here and it’s so upsetting to think that it may no longer be here. I have so many people coming back every week to listen to my music in such a wonderful setting. This is probably the best thing I’ve ever done and I’m going to miss it. In fact, if they’re open next year by some miracle, I will fly back from Florida to play here again.”
