New stores and restaurants are returning to downtown Riverhead, but there are more than a handful of empty or boarded-up storefronts in the community, a sign of the hard times Riverhead, and the country, has faced.

Riverhead Patch is going to spotlight some of these vacant businesses to start a discussion in the community about what can, could or should be done to make use of the abandoned places across town and revitalize Riverhead.

We've featured vacant buildings in the past on Main Street, near the Riverside traffic circle, on Route 25, and more. One place we haven't visited is Polish Town.

With that in mind, let's really use our imagination. At 413 Pulaski Street, a vacant lot has been for sale since December 2010, with a brief time off the listing directory about a year ago.

The 8,250-square-foot lot is fetching an asking price of $194,500.

Located in the heart of Polish Town, this empty lot is wide open for the taking. It's zoned "Village Center," the purpose of which - according to town code - is to "transform village commercial nodes into vibrant 'Main Streets' with small shops, restaurants and professional services."

Permitted and specially permitted uses include a list of 20 options, ranging from retail stores to museums to restaurants to indoor recreation facilities.

What would you like to see in this lot? What do you think Polish Town could use?

Click here to join the discussion about other properties in town.