Despite Rumors, Trader Joe's Has No Plans For Local Store

It looks like the wait will continue for West Islip residents – Trader Joe's will not be coming to our area anytime soon, according to a company representative.

"Unfortunately, an additional Long Island store is not in our two-year plan as of now," Rachel Broderick, a customer relations representative for Trader Joe's told Patch in an email.

Trader Joe's operates seven Long Island stores in Commack, Hewlett, Lake Grove, Merrick, Oceanside, Plainview and Westbury. The nearest store, Commack, is just under 13 miles from West Islip.

Social networks lit up with rumors of a potential Trader Joe's supermarket in West Babylon after being mentioned in a column in last week's edition of The Babylon Beacon.

"Rumor Mill: Heard that Trader Joe's is coming to West Babylon at a location formerly used for a car dealership. We'll keep you posted," wrote Mary Gallagher in her weekly Babylon News & Muse column.

Trader Joe's is a common request among West Islip Patch readers as a replacement in area vacancies due to their healthy, low-cost foods.

While the representative noted the supermarket chain will not be bringing a new Trader Joe's to our area anytime soon, she did leave behind a nugget of hope.

"We certainly appreciate your readers' interests in seeing us expand further in the area, though!" she wrote in her email to Patch.

If you are interested in letting the company know how much you would like a Trader Joe's in or near Babylon Village, you can drop them a line at their "Location Requests" page and help give our area a boost.