August 1, 2008
A sign says New York Pizza is expanding, but it's not
I’ve driven past New York Pizza in Vinton several times in the last few months, and a large sign advertising a big expansion of this well-known pizza eatery rises high beside the restaurant. But nothing’s happening there, and it may not for a long time.
The tall sign in front of a vacant building and beside New York Pizza on Hardy Road states “Coming soon to New York Pizza....new 10,000 square feet addition.” Supposedly, the expansion would include “More family entertainment” and “More seating,” according to the marquee.
I finally caught up with the owner of New York Pizza, Tony Montuori, about when this expansion is slated to occur. And it turns out that it won’t be happening, at least not for now. For various reasons, including the deaths of his parents in the past few years, Montuori has decided to put future expansion plans on the backburner for at least another year or so.
But that doesn’t really explain why he's left this sign up for so long. Montuori said it’s been there for the past several years.
“I keep forgetting to take it down,” he told me this week. “It’s been there so long you get used to it.”
Montuori, a native of Italy who opened the Vinton restaurant in 1983, said he plans to remove the expansion advertisement eventually, though he didn’t offer a timeframe.
Comments
[August 1, 2008 11:47 AM]
DebiThat sign has been up for at least 15 years. A mite forgetful aren't they?
[August 1, 2008 12:45 PM]
KKHonestly, Who cares? They still have the best pizza and steak subs in town.
[August 1, 2008 2:52 PM]
SteveYep, the sign's been up there for quite some time, but at least it's not hurting anything AND it's in good repair.
The part most consumers don't take into account is that signs cost money, and refacing that sign WILL cost some money. Plus there's the legal red tape of permits & permission from the town government to change the sign.
My only thought is that the owners are losing valuable advertising space, but it's their's to do with as they wish.
From the comments posted, they obviously do the first thing right, providing a quality product.
[August 1, 2008 4:07 PM]
mhammondThings could be worse...
I was visiting a friend in Tucson, AZ and I noticed that all over town there are big signs in front of vacant buildings and even vacant lots. My buddy told me that they put in a sign ordinance that severely limits the size of new signs, but old signs are grandfathered in. So, if you had a big sign and you go out of business you just leave it there as an asset to the building in case the new renter or owner wants to run a business. They can update an old big sign but not build a new big one.
[August 1, 2008 4:52 PM]
don reidTry to find something worthwhile to write about-best food in town and he is a top notch business owner who cares about all of his customers. Just the notion that you would even ask him tells me you haven't a clue what to write about. There are plenty of worthless, outdated signs in the Cave Spring area-see what you can find out over there.
[August 1, 2008 5:10 PM]
Mike DIt been up there for a long time. About a year before the fire I thought. Didn't think it had been up for 15 years, Debi. All the money they spent on the blocks they have sitting there seams a waist. Know the had to be expensive. The building was once a laundromat.
[August 1, 2008 6:13 PM]
Andrew SymeI've been their plenty of times a month and even at lunch rush I've never had a hard time finding a seat. Expanding probably isn't a worthwhile endeavor.
[August 1, 2008 9:57 PM]
Debimaybe not 15 years but well over 10. my daughter and their daughter were friends in first grade and the sign went up then or very shortly after. the girls are now 20.
[August 2, 2008 1:22 PM]
smone reason they have not expanded is because of the zoning issues the town of vinton will not rezone the old laundromat
[August 3, 2008 1:04 AM]
JPI think its been there since the dawn of time...
[August 3, 2008 8:23 AM]
CJDebi it seems you have a problem with the sign. if you ask they might let YOU take it down for them! That sign has not affected the quality of food or service.
[August 3, 2008 10:27 AM]
Dan FranksI'm really surprised the town of Vinton hasn't made them do something there. They went in there with a backhoe, and tore down the hillside behind those buildings, and then just left a big mess, with construction equipment and semi trailers on the property. The whole strip along there looks blighted.
[August 3, 2008 8:49 PM]
EdieWhy not attend a Vinton town council meeting and ask your questions to get accurate answers?
[August 3, 2008 9:12 PM]
DebiNo, CJ, I don't have a problem with the sign, the owners, or the food. I simply pointed out the sign had been there longer than "several years" as was originally stated. Thank you so kindly for your opinion.
[August 3, 2008 11:28 PM]
Dan FranksI'm ambiguous on the whole affair. They quite possibly have the best pizza, calzones and sandwiches in the Roanoke Valley, which is great, but they don't seem to have much regard for the town, leaving that half finished construction mess there for so long.
[August 4, 2008 10:19 AM]
RigbyI think New York Pizza could definitely use the expansion, since their business is always booming and the parking lot is always packed.
As many others here have said, they have the best pizza,calzones,cheesesteaks,etc. around. I always recommend them to people!
The exterior of the place could stand a little visual improvement however.
I'd really like to see them expand and improve the exterior look of the location, but don't feel it's worth getting all bent out of shape about it.
[August 4, 2008 10:33 AM]
KCBest pizza and steak and cheese subs in town. WHO CARES about the the sign.
I've been there a hundred times and never even noticed that sign.
I just wish he'd expained to Salem, since I moved from Vinton, there isn't a good pizza place like NY pizza, but I dont mind driving accross town!!!
[August 4, 2008 11:59 AM]
JennyIt's interesting that many of you have observed that this expansion sign has been up for at least 10 years. I've only lived here for five years, so that hasn't been long enough to notice the sign's apparently long-standing pattern. I'm only relying on the information that Tony Montuori told me about it.
And as many of you have stated, the decision by New York Pizza not to expand likely is no impact on the food served there (I realize that it is an area favorite).
But when asking about the restaurant's expansion plans, it struck me as odd that the owner would post this kind of advertising in the forefront with no sign of progress.
[August 4, 2008 4:12 PM]
Rigby"it struck me as odd that the owner would post this kind of advertising in the forefront with no sign of progress."
Especially with business being as seemingly and consistently good as it always is.
It seems like the money would be there to exapand, which in turn would only bring more profit.
But there is probably more to it than I know of.
Hope it isn't a sign the owners don't wish to continue much longer here.
[August 5, 2008 8:59 PM]
RMACKC- you need to try Highlander Pizza on 419 at Oak Grove. Close to Salem and excellent food. It is new to Roanoke, I think they started in Radford.
[August 7, 2008 12:08 PM]
Fed Up with NYP's MessNYP has great food, but as a Vinton resident I'm tired of all the construction materials that have been littering their "expanded" parking lot for YEARS.
When I asked the Town about this, their response was that each time the owner's building permit is set to expire, he performs just enough work to extend it again. Also, the Burger King in Vinton that has recently been rebuilt was done primarily so NYP could have access to the traffic light at the edge of the Burger King parking lot.
Mr. Montouri, PLEASE clean up your act regardless of whether or not you plan to expand and what your sign says. This is one of the biggest eye-sores in Vinton!
[August 7, 2008 2:51 PM]
KRThe sign is the best looking part of the property!!! The delay in changing the wording goes hand-in-hand with how long the "expansion" has taken! I don't think anyone can dispute the quality of NYP's food. But quite honestly, I don't think the Town of Vinton has ever had a worse eyesore than the property NYP is situated on. The Town has allowed this mess for so many years, with very little or no progress. We have anxiously awaited the expansion in hopes they would clean up the mess. Not only have they dug out all around their original building, but they took a decent looking building (formerly a laundry/cleaners) and filled it full of building materials, surrounded it with a mess, and allowed it to deteriorate. Unfortunately their lack of being "good neighbors" outweighs their good food! We'll go back to eating there when they respect the residents and business owners of Vinton.
[August 8, 2008 8:02 AM]
RichI don't care if they paid me to eat there. It looks like a dump, and I don't eat at dumps, or places resembling one.
[August 8, 2008 5:25 PM]
Brandy B"dug out all around their original building" Hah! Take a look at the whole block. It looks like Iraq. Even some homes on the street above and behind them have been affected. This is the kind of stuff that keeps Vinton a second rate town. Salem or Roanoke would never tolerate this.
[August 20, 2008 9:04 PM]
mike DHaven't been through that part Vinton in awhile and it looks better than it use to. No piles of dirt or backhoe sitting by the road. While there is mess on the property it is neat and organized now. Did see most of the sign at the main building was out. That a bit of an eye sore to me.
[September 1, 2008 11:35 PM]
Mike DForgot this on my last post. What I see as a bigger eyesore in Vinton right now is the old carwash. Sign fell over in a storm early this year I think. Building still has power as there are still lights and a drink machine. All wash bays are blocked by trash cans. The automatic wash has been dismantled. Haven't seen anyone using it this year. Building it's self looks run down. What happened to this carwash? I used it all the time in years past. It sits in between Long Johns and Bumper to Bumper.
[September 2, 2008 9:55 AM]
Di : →http://blueridgegal.com/Site_7/Blue_Ridge_Gal/Blue_Ridge_Gal.htmlCurrent signs should be of great importance to any business owner. If I see a dirty old run down sign when looking for a place to eat, I drive on by because to me it says the interior of the building may be the same. Being new to the Roanoke area, I have noticed a lot of dirty looking areas in town, both the buildings and the signs. A small investment of cleaning the place up may just increase their business income... don't ya know.
[September 3, 2008 1:19 PM]
Paul LemoinI suppose as long as you have a sign up claiming that you are expanding, that justifies leaving all the building materials and equipment lying around property. There has been a backhoe parked up against the dirt cliff beside the building for several years. Why in the world would someone let this kind of expensive equipment sit idle for so long? If you wanted to use the property to store all this stuff, why not erect a fence of some kind to keep this mess out of sight?