Construction starting soon on new Smithtown self-storage project

Developers of a new self-storage facility in Smithtown are planning to start construction on the project this fall. 

Safeguard Self Storage is hoping to break ground in November for the construction of a three-story, 59,000-square-foot facility with 600 units on a 1.33-acre lot at 1036A West Jericho Turnpike. 

This will be the company’s first location in Suffolk County. Safeguard currently has six self-storage facilities on Long Island, all located in Nassau County, including East Rockaway, Hewlett, Massapequa, Plainview, Valley Stream and West Hempstead. 

The Safeguard project has received the necessary approvals from the Town of Smithtown, which included variances for signage, building and parking. The variances approved included no storage unit door visible from the street, alterations of required setbacks and land usage to permit construction 10 feet of slopes greater than 25 percent, and a reduction of required parking to just 13 spaces. 

“We are very happy with the result and want to thank the town officials and the planning staff for working in a collaborative manner to bring this project to fruition,” attorney Keith Brown, of the Brown, Altman & DiLeo law firm, which secured the approvals, said in a written statement. “We took a vacant parcel in the middle of commercial district and converted it into a brand new state-of-the-art self-storage facility that will generate tax rateables for the community.” 

Stanley Bonilla, senior vice president of development for Safeguard, praised Brown and his team for working with the town to pave the way for the new facility. 

“Safeguard is very excited to bring our best-in-class self-storage product to the Smithtown community,” Bonilla said in the statement. “We look forward to breaking ground on this exciting new project.” 

Founded in 1989 with its first self-storage facility in New Orleans, Atlanta-based Safeguard now has more than 80 locations in six states, offering more than 4.5 million square feet of storage space, according to the company. 

The new Smithtown facility is expected to be completed in Jan. 2025.