The changing landscape of the Plainview-Old Bethpage area near Old Country and Round Swamp roads signals the impending arrival of Country Pointe Plainview, a sprawling project with age-specific housing, along with retail, a clubhouse, trails and more.
Grounds that once housed dilapidated county buildings now boast excavators and dump trucks as the Beechwood Organization’s 143-acre mixed-use development begins to take shape. Michael Dubb, Beechwood’s founder and CEO, said ground has broken and foundations will soon go in, making way for 660 market-rate units for 55-and-older residents and 90 “golden age” units for 62-and-over, with the remaining homes for adults of all ages.
“We have 175 units now in contract,” said Dubb, adding that these buyers had no model to view and no virtual reality tour before purchasing. “They basically bought the floor plan on a piece of paper. These people have been waiting for this for some time and our goal is to deliver these homes starting late 2017 through all of 2018.”
As Plainview is a Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC), Dubb said that Country Pointe will help seniors remain in the neighborhood as they age, without having to deal with remodeling bathrooms, raking leaves and shoveling snow.
“Our buyers want to get out of that big house—their children have moved on and they want to scale back,” said Dubb, who emphasized that around 50-75 percent of the purchases so far have been from Plainview residents. “They want to stay in the area and be close to family. A lot of them still have jobs, but the kids are grown.”
And according to Dubb, there is also a social aspect to what makes Country Pointe a popular option as illustrated in another Beechwood development in Westbury.
“They want the lifestyle. People come to these communities and they make new friends,” he said. “In Westbury, you’d be amazed at how many new friendships are made.”
One of the main social hubs of Country Pointe at Plainview will be its 24,000-square-foot clubhouse with two outdoor pools, a fitness center, cafe, card rooms and a ballroom. The community will also have tennis courts, 57 acres of land designated for parks, recreation and open space, as well as retail space within walking distance featuring a Super ShopRite and an expanded Trio Hardware—both relocated from cramped quarters in the Morton Village Shopping Center.
Dubb said that the goal is to open that ShopRite in the month of August, while Trio will operate a free-standing building that aims to open in early 2018. Dubb said that Beechwood also has leases out to Starbucks, Chase Manhattan Bank, an as-yet-unnamed top pizzeria and other smaller tenants.
“ShopRite has been a pillar of the Plainview community for 30 years,” said Dubb, adding that if Plainview had a mayor it would be owner John Greenfield. “He first became interested in this site 25 years ago, so this has been a much-discussed prospect.”
Meanwhile, the addition of Trio Hardware brings another robust Plainview business into the mix. Co-owners Todd and Ritsa Kirschner, who took full ownership of Trio this year from the Carlow family who ran the beloved store for 55 years, said their current location is filled to capacity, floor to ceiling, and it’s time to grow.
“The Beechwood Organization has made it possible for Trio to grow with the community, said Todd Kirschner. “The new Trio will be bigger, better, and as personal as ever.”
As construction continues and now picks up in earnest, Dubb said the Town of Oyster Bay has proved to be fine partners and that the town wants to accommodate residents who have waited so long for this community.
“Everyone understands that this will be an economic engine for the community,” he said. “It is going to be gorgeous and everyone we talk to is so anxious to move in.”
For more information about Country Pointe at Plainview, visit www.countrypointeplainview.com or call 800-890-0332.
