Metro Optics reopens renovated Westchester Square store
BY PATRICK ROCCHIO
Metro Optics recently
returned to its Westchester
Square location after a major
modernization and expansion.
The store, located since
1988 at 25 Westchester Square,
reopened to the public on
Monday, January 28.
It temporarily moved its
offi ces several storefronts
north of the present store during
the construction project.
The renovations created
a streamlined operation that
will enhance the level of service
and care offered, the
management believes.
When the landlord added
more square footage to the
rear portion of the fi rst fl oor
it enabled the popular eye
care business to connect its
management offi ce to its retail
operation from its previous
second fl oor location, said
John Bonizio, Metro Optics
co-owner.
“The landlord expanded
the building by putting another
story and a half or two
stories on top of the building,
so we were put in the position
where we had to vacate the
second fl oor,” said Bonizio.
The landlord was willing
to make a deal with the optical
store and it served as an
opportunity to modernize, he
explained.
“It gives us the opportunity
to better serve our patients.
The space is larger (in
general) and the exam facilities
are much larger then they
used to be,” said Bonizio, adding
“I am really happy about
it, I feel very confortable.”
Having more space and
roomier offi ces in the heart of
the store is better for employees,
he said.
Sara Bonizio, Metro Optics’
marking and public relations
manager, said that she
believes the improvements
make far more effi cient use of
space.
The interior of the store
has a number of new display
cases.
An employee of the store
who is a graphic artist and a
graduate from Bronx Community
College will design
a visual representation of
history of Metro Optics,
which was founded in 1978 in
Parkchester, said Sara Bonizio.
Current Metro Optics locations
include its fl agship
in the Throggs Neck Shopping
Center and a Hunts
Point store that was also recently
modernized, she said.
There is a Metro Optics in
Parkchester as well.
There are plans to incorporate
classic photographs
of Metro Optics and its employees
into the décor at the
Square, she said.
Most importantly, Sara
Bonizio said it key that Metro
Optics is that it is a place
where patients feel beyond
confortable, taken care of,
and that their eye care is in
the best of hands.
The company, Bronx-born
and bred, has been active
in the management of the
Westchester Square Business
Improvement District and in
supporting local causes.
Many employees start out
as patients, said Metro Optics
general manager Brett Schumacher.
A former employee, Darnella
Valentino, told the
Bronx Times that she used
the experience she honed on
the job to advance her career
in eye care after starting as a
salesperson.
The ongoing construction
at 25 Westchester Square
has led to the relocation of
another longtime business,
Simelson’s Pharmacy, to a
space across the street from
its longtime location.
It is likely a permanent
move, a store employee told
the Bronx Times.
Also the BID moved from
its 2nd fl oor location to a new
space on Frisby Avenue.
The property’s renovation
will include the installation
of an elevator and modern offi
ces on the upper fl oors.
The landlord of 25
Westchester Square wasn’t
immediately available for
comment.
BRONX WEEKLY F www.BXTimes.com ebruary 10, 2019 10
The new interior of the renovated and enlarged Metro Optics store at 25 Westchester Square is a
modern and inviting space. Schneps Media / Patrick Rocchio
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