Shake Shack in Commack, near Lowe's, advances after Smithtown OKs site plan

The Town of Smithtown advanced plans for Shake Shack — the Manhattan-based chain featuring burgers and shakes — to open a restaurant in Commack.

The Smithtown Town Board approved site plans for the company to build a 3,553-square-foot food retail building with outdoor seating and a drive-thru. 

The restaurant would be located on a 19.4-acre property on the southwest corner of Crooked Hill Road and Henry Street. The property already encompasses Lowe's, a 166,000-square-foot home improvement store, according to plans filed with the Town of Smithtown.

Kevin Reim, a permitting manager with Melville-based Bohler Engineering, filed the plans for the project with the town. Reim said in an interview that with the site plan approved, Shack Shack must now apply for building permits to begin construction. 

The April 1 board vote was 5-0. Representatives for Shake Shack did not respond to requests for comment about the proposal.

Shake Shack filed its application for site plan review in February 2024, according to a copy of the proposal provided by the Smithtown planning department.

Shake Shack operates five locations on Long Island: Oceanside, New Hyde Park, Westbury, Melville and Lake Grove, according to the company's website. 

In an April 1 letter to Reim, Smithtown's Board of Site Plan Review said the approval was conditional. The applicant has to obtain permits from the town’s building department before construction can begin. It must also secure permits from the Suffolk County Department of Public Works for highway work, including a new curb cut and other improvements on Crooked Hill Road.

The developer must prevent stormwater pollution during the construction process and build a mesh fence around trees to protect them from being cleared. 

Smithtown Supervisor Ed Wehrheim said in a statement the restaurant would be an "exciting new addition to Commack" amid a surge of new businesses that have arrived there in recent months, such as the PGA Superstore, Restoration Hardware and a soon-to-open indoor entertainment center for children called Kids Empire.

"Commack is not just growing commercially — it’s thriving as a community," Wehrheim said. 

Bob Semprini, president of the Commack Community Association, said he has no issue with the proposal as long as there are no major complaints from the community.

“If it brings in tax dollars, and if there’s no objections from people, it might be good for the area,” Semprini said.