Trader Joe's Set to Open at Westbury Plaza

Specialty grocery store Trader Joe's will open its doors to eager customers Friday morning at its brand new East Garden City location.

The store, located at 900 Old Country Road in the all new Gallery at Westbury Plaza shopping center, is the first to open within five miles of Garden City and just the fifth in Nassau County.

Trader Joe's will be located on the western side of the shopping center, right next to The Container Store, which held its grand opening last weekend.

According to Newsday [paid link], Trader Joe's will take up 13,000 square feet of the 330,000 square-foot shopping center. And to fit in with the Long Island scene, the store will have a little more.

Depictions of planes flown from the historic Roosevelt Field airfield by pioneering pilots such as Charles Lindbergh and others adorn the walls. Another mural features Long Island's surrounding landmarks, including Old Westbury Gardens, the Castle Gould of the Sands Point Preserve, the Nassau Coliseum and, in the distance, the Statue of Liberty with a Trader Joe's bag.

Joining Trader Joe's and The Container Store in the coming months will be Shake Shack, Old Navy, Bloomingdales and Saks Fifth Avenue, along with a number of other stores.

The specialty grocery store is expected to get some competition before the end of the month when Fairway Market opens at the former site of Home Depot Expo on Corporate Drive, less than one mile from Trader Joe's.

Residents have already begun to voice their concerns about traffic in the area, which many believe was a problem even before the arrival of the new stores.

Do you think the new stores will have a negative impact on traffic in the area? Tell us in the comment section below.