How about a preschool... This is big enough to house a huge indoor playground, computer lab & cafeteria!

Sell La Grange to the Culinary Institute of America. La Grange can be the Long Island campus. CIA has All award-winning restaurants, like the CIA in Hyde Park. Each student spends time in both the front and back of the house to learn and master the full scope of restaurant operations. Under the guidance of their expert chef-instructors and maîtres d’hôtel, students execute the meal and service to the exacting standards set by the CIA. People go there to dine on the delicious cuisine which students create under the guidance of their chefs. It's terrific and taste delicious!
We can even sell Westbrook to the CIA for dorms and Udall can be their Long Island campus. They make great pastries too! We can make it the CIA @ La Grange Inn. Someone should really look into this idea!

"Sell La Grange to the Culinary Institute of America. La Grange can be the Long Island campus. CIA has All award-winning restaurants, like the CIA in Hyde Park" ......

I love that idea!

I agree with Irene. That building needs to remain as is.

I LOVE Irene's idea! My middle school daughter's dream is to go to the Culinary Institute of America and this would be so convenient! I would be behind it 110%

Wow, this really has a lot of space! How about some nice offices: WI patch headquarters, a realtor, PAWS, WI Summit, and a Smartboard storage facility (I hear there will be some extras floating around).

a Stekhouse like Blackstones would cut it!

Hi everyone. Some great suggestions so far. I love Irene's idea about the CIA. We could have one heck of a Patch reader party there! Keep the ideas coming! Thanks.

I like the idea of the CIA or a restaurant. Not thrilled with the business office ideas. Is there enough parking for a school?

No offices needed there..We have too many empty offices already. Panchos Cantina was looking in the area a few years back.... Maybe someone should call Glen..... his main restaurant is on long beach rd in Island Park. No preschool, we r closing schools here already....The neighborhood looks terrible with all the empty storefronts and the lots that r vacant from the two burnt down florist.. and the lot next to T D bank...... Lets get some companies interested in our town again

When a "thought seed" is planted it most often takes root. Glad to see this thought has finally rooted - it's a perfect location for LICIA. Another "thought seed" - why not
convert the old Dzus Fastener factory into our own West Islip Train Station?

That space would be ideal for a park with basketball courts,swings, and a skate/bike park.
We need to get children back outside and away from all those video games and social networks!!!!! lets do this is for all of our children and the many more to come!!!

Yes if part of the structure must stay intact then you can make it a rec center of some type so there could be indoor activities. I would love indoor basketball courts as well
but thats just me!!!

Good luck with that. West Islip is the home of NIMBY. Just ask Walgreens and 7-11. I think a skate park is a great idea. I heard awhile ago they were looking into building one at Casamento. I think this town needs a good Italian Bakery but that spot is too big.

La Grange Inn is part of West Islip's history and should remain intact. The Culinary Institute of America Campus suggestion does sound like a good idea. Who should make the call to someone at the Culinary Institute to run this idea by them to see if they're interested? The West Islip Chamber of Commerce? Islip Town Hall?

Sorry for Being Naive, Marianne what is "NIMBY"

It means Not In My Back Yard. West Islip never seems to welcome new big business here and because of this we have no commercial business to offset the property taxes we pay. Kind of a double edge sword.

I had the culinary idea for a few years now and shared this possibility with many people and they also thoug ht it was a great idea. To keep the West Islip heritage at La Grainge a panel must present this to the town of Islip. If that doesn't happen, it would just be an academic idea.ambece

Troy continued... Plans need to drawn up.Historical society will get involved. The Pace lot could be used for expansion or horticulture which Cornell cooperative extension can provide input. The abandoned home across from the library csn be used as offices, enrollment eyc

um......isn't La Grange privately owned?......as well as the "abandoned" home across from the library

Is Rick Olivieri still a co-owner under the La Grange Inn Corporation? Also, is Tom Barraga still the contact person through the Suffolk County Legislature? Is Joe DeCarlo still the head of the West Islip Association regarding this topic? It looks like the suggestion of the Culinary Institute of America came up on the Task Force's List of suggestions back in 2008 as well...not sure how far this suggestion was investigated back then though.

Any business that will pay taxes...

u got it rich

I commented before, We should make it a sports complex, outdoor deck hockey, ice skating rink. West islip & St Johns has an ice hockey team. ( The Rinx ice time is usally 6am or midnight because of too many teams wanting Ice time) Many kids sign up at the West Babylon Youth Conference center and play deck hockey from November to March, keep the $$ in West Islip. Having a comples would give the West islip kids a place to go and have fun. As someone commented before the building can be converted to indoor basketball, volleyball,concessions, etc. I'm sure we could think of more activities for West islip!

I think it's time to let go of the past. The existing building barely resembles the original, with all of the extensions. What's so great about it that it has to be preserved? A day care center? a sports complex? these are pipe dreams that ignore the realities of business. The buildings that retailers put up today (like Walgreens) are nicely done and nicely landscaped, just look at TD Bank. This is private property and whoever the owner is should be able to do with it what they want. JW