Calling itself an anchor for the Airport Plaza retail center on Route 110, Farmingdale's Home Depot has moved into the East Farmingdale strip mall, which is still in the process of being developed.

Home Depot moved from its Willow Park Center location on Smith Street, which is being closed. It joins such establishments already at the mall as Staples, Modell's, and Applebee's, and several other stores and eateries are expected to follow. A grand opening celebration for Home Depot's new, 132,000 square-foot retail center took place on June 9, and was attended by company officials, community leaders, area residents, and building trade contractors. The store opened its doors to customers on June 10.

"We are the anchor for the plaza. We are definitely the big boys on the block," Ed Eaton, manager of the store, said in a recent interview.

The new store, which consists of a 116,000 square-foot main shopping area plus a 16,000-feet garden area, is larger than the old one, which was 112,000 square feet.

"It's a newer layout. It's wider aisles, and there's a greater assortment of merchandise, as well as a dedicated decor area. There's a central hub in the center of the store dedicated to designing, as well as the lumber and building materials for the contractors," said Eaton.

He added that the move will impact the community because, "There are three easy accesses to the store now, and again the convenience for the customer to come in and shop in the larger store. The tool rental center is going to be a big impact, as well as the ease of unloading under the covered overhang. So those components alone will be a major contribution."

It will also have an effect on the local employment situation. The new location is expected to employ as many as 280 people once all hiring is completed, including 150 from the Willow Park Center location. The new Home Depot will also continue the community service projects conducted by the old store, according to Eaton, including a job shadowing program with Farmingdale High School students.

At its completion, the 90-acre Airport Plaza site, which is owned by the Fairchild Corporation and is being developed by New Jersey-based Levcom, is expected to feature 800,000 square feet of development. As of January, the value of the property, which is the former site of aviation manufacturing, was estimated at over $100 million.

National Amusements pioneered the development of Fairchild's former aviation defense manufacturing site in Farmingdale when it built a movie theater adjacent to Airport Plaza a few years ago.

Eaton noted that he believes Home Depot's grand opening marks a major step forward in the development of the Airport Plaza strip mall. "We certainly hope that we are going to be the major players here. We are going to continue to employ people right from the Farmingdale community," he said. "The majority of our employees are based right out of the Farmingdale community."