The absence of Foodtown in Norwood for the last 15 months has been deeply felt by thousands of local residents. The elderly, who were able to walk to the supermarket before the store burned to the ground in December 2009, were particularly burdened by the loss.

But the store has emerged bigger and better with a much wider array of offerings and more room for residents with walkers, strollers and shopping carts to maneuver.

The Katz family, comprised of astute businessmen who own 13 other stores, has occasionally rankled local residents, as when it tried to buy and close a rival Bedford Park market in the 1990s. Ensuing protests, particularly among senior citizens, made them reverse course.

But to the family’s credit, they have deep roots in the community and ensured that staffers were employed at their other stores after the fire. The Katz’s investment in the Norwood store — they say their expenses for the rebuilding outweigh their insurance settlement — appears to be significant and the decision to offer many things too few Bronx supermarkets have, such as organic foods and a robust produce section, is a vote for quality in a community that deserves much more of it. Entrepreneurs all over should take heed.

As Noah Katz told a customer on Tuesday who expressed appreciation for the new store: “You deserve a first class store at low prices.”

The Katz family has earned the plaudits it has been receiving for rebuilding in style in a relatively short amount of time. There’s still the large lot across the street made vacant by another fire just two months earlier, but the rebuilding of Foodtown sends the message to prospective developers that Norwood is still open for good business.