Business Beat: White Castle Closes; Car Dealership, LA Fitness Opening

This week, Patch reported on a variety of business developments across northern and central Suffolk County. Here are the highlights.

White Castle Closes Mt. Sinai Location; Chain Considers Returning to the Area

After about 10 years of serving its patented sliders in Mt. Sinai, White Castle has ceased operations at its location on Route 25A after the lease expired. Jamie Richardson, vice president of the famous chain, explained that their situation at that location just wasn't working out. "It’s always regretful when we can no longer continue to operate in a space," Richardson said. "As we looked at the performance and how we were doing in terms of our sales there, despite our best efforts we couldn’t get it to the point where it made sense to re-up for more time at that specific site." Richardson said that all employees were offered a position at one of the other locations. The company is still open to returning to the area at another location.

Smithtown Resident Opens Car Dealership in St. James

One of your neighbors has decided to keep his new business local and take over a vacant St. James storefront with the opening of Certified HQ, a used car dealership on Middle Country Road. The dealership opened Saturday. Brian Smith, owner of the dealership and a Smithtown resident, started in the car sales industry when he was 13 years old, washing cars on the lot at his dad’s dealership Mark Motors in West Islip. After his dad retired and moved Smith looked to re-open his dealership, but ultimately decided to stay local.

LA Fitness Coming to Commack

Commack residents will soon have another option of where to work out over the upcoming winter months. LA Fitness has opened a preview center for its new Commack location, taking over the former Borders in the King Kullen Plaza off Veterans Memorial Highway. Renovations have been underway for months, leaving local residents guessing as to what was coming.

Comsewogue Grad Wants to Help Young Professionals Clean Up Their Act Online

When you grow up immersed in the digital world, you tend not to worry about the trail you’re leaving behind in the way of status messages and pictures posted online; a trail that anybody can find with a few quick Google searches. When Evan Tousey, 25, was in Comsewogue High School (he graduated in 2007) or at Stony Brook University, he says he didn’t think about what his social profile would look like to potential employers or college administrators, especially in an environment of heightened competition for open slots. At one time or another he knows he put a picture or status update on his Facebook page that in hindsight does not show him in the most professional manner. Tousey – who grew up in Port Jefferson Station and now lives in Mt. Sinai – says that a young person pounding the pavement for the first time shouldn’t be held back by a negative profile on the Internet. “Employers want applicants to be squeaky clean,” he said. That’s why he dreamed up his new company: Desocialize Me.

New Tapas Restaurant Coming to St. James

With the popular St. James restaurant O's Food and Wine Bar closing, Five.Five2 will be moving in. The new eatery will take over the 552 Route 25A location, and according to an employee, should be open by the end of October. Another employee setting up the restaurant Thursday said it will serve an international tapas cuisine. The owner of Five.Five2 was not available for comment.