LIC rainy day linkage; stalled construction sites, strip club blues

Someone was arguing on another thread there there were hundreds of stalled sites in LIC.

Exactly #3. I wholeheartedly support the new strip club! Better than the 2 or 3 fried chicken and Chinese food places at Queensboro Plaza.

” “When a car comes off the [Queensborough] Bridge … we don’t want ‘Welcome to Queens’ to be a strip club,” said Assemblywoman Cathy Nolan (D-Sunnyside), adding that the building’s proximity to residential areas, a school and the Silvercup film studio makes it a poor location for an adult entertainment establishment. ”

What on earth does a film studio have to do with this? Are Hollywood’s delicate sensibilties going to be offended?

Proximity to residential areas and a school? It’s in an industrial district under an off-ramp.

Our “leaders” should have worked to proactively change the zoning if they were opposed to strip clubs in the area– great governing, guys.

Strip clubs are crappy but this sort of “leadership” pisses me off to no end.

Cathy Nolan is one of many women on CB2 who are trying to mask this protest for what it really is- insecurity. These women are so worried their husbands might go sneaking off to stuff dollar bills down g-strings and they think withholding a liquor license is going to keep Gus Drakopoulos from turning HIS building into a strip club. Some battle just can’t be won. Many people in manhattan live within walking sitance of strip clubs, in good neighborhoods too. Why should this neighborhood be off limits to those types of businesses. This is a neighborhood populated with both young people and families and it’s nice that someone is looking to cater to everyone’s preferences by opening up a place where men, and in some cases women, can admire the female form. Maybe someone else will come along and open up a male revue, that way the neighborhood would be balanced.

CB2 should not let them put a live nude place there, but play the liquor license card to restrict their signage. And maybe make them call it something a little classier than Sin City. That’s not going to draw classy clientele with females. Just force them to be at least classy on the exterior… that’s all.

Also I think the politicos just get involved to have their picture taken while ‘rising to the community’s defense’. Boring. Overplayed. We’re Not Stupid. Just fix the potholes on 5th street instead. Thanks.

Since when does CB2 have a say in what people do with their private property?? If it were my building, I would tell Cathy Nolan right to her face to suck a big fat one! And since when did those places, even the so-called “high-end” ones draw in classy types. Men go their looking for a lap dance and 90 percent of the time they pay for something “extra”, even in the nice corporate ones. Ask any dancer, or your boyfriend and they’ll tell you. Don’t expect much from the new place. But don’t think that because you’re part of some honky tonk community board you have a say in what a businessman can or can’t do with his building.

Don’t we want businesses to flourish so they’ll pay higher taxes for our neighborhood? Strip clubs can be big business…

have to agree, even in a down market, lic is more favorable to bk due to access to the city

The map is pretty interesting. LIC does not have as many stalled projects as you think… but I think this is wrong. I myself know of stalled projects that are not listed… I’m sure just developers did not maybe all get as far as getting them filed. I know there was a project at the Murray Park that is now not going forward and that is not on this map. So I’m sure there are more.

“Classy, respectful strip club” is an oxymoron.

Bravo to CB2 in trying to keep these places out of our community.

@ #20, I’m #19. Obviously you are not a fan of strip clubs, nor am I. But they do have a right to exist as legitimate business enterprises. There is a decent way to run these places and there is an overtly scummy way to do so too. This guy, however, strikes me as a creepy, sleaze-bag. Mostly, he strikes me as a bully. Even though it is not in a particularly built-up residential area, I don’t like to think that some misogynistic, chubby-fingered old perv is about to bully ANYBODY into giving him something he feels he is entitled to. I certainly do not like his threats if people don’t cave to his demands. If he thought he could make more money by running an alcohol-free/ all-nude establishment-he would have done so in the first place. If he wants to call the bluff of CB2 by making threats, I’d like to see CB2 call his bluff right back. I’d like to see CB2 say ‘go ahead, see how long you last’. However, CB2 is a weakened committee due to previous wolf-crying.

That Cathy Nolan is a piece of work. First her objections to liquor licenses on Vernon, and now her desire to install an “arts center” on someone else’s property. Oh, what a big bully you are, Cathy Nolan!

Gus owns the property. Strip clubs (as disgusting as I think they are) are perfectly legal in a non-residential, commercial area.

Are the objections based on some sense of morality?

dont know whats happening there , but i do know this we all miss it

Has anyone been to Testaccio yet?

I think you mean Cassidy’s Ale House in Jackson Heights. But I thought the McReilly’s place were also the owners of a place in Woodside/Sunnyside?

http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/3/335837/restaurant/Jackson-Heights/Cassidys-Ale-House-New-York

Is the placed pronounced “tes-TA-chee-ohs” or “TES-ta-cos”?

I went there for a private party last week. I found the brick oven pizza was the best in LIC, and other goodies like roasted figs with prosciutto, smoked salmon puffs, I can’t even remember what else, I was really wowed. And the space is spectacular. Good luck to them, they put in a lot of work on this place.

No, I went as a guest.

How in high hell can Testaccio already have their liquor license? After what we saw everyone else go through? That is absolutely insane. I’m sorry. No offense to their place, it looks great. But there is something fishy there. I’m friends with Blend and it is SO WRONG what happened to them. I don’t understand how Testaccio got their license already. ???

What happened to Blend is a direct result of the petty actions of Ms. Cathy Nolan. How are food service businesses expected to thrive if they can’t even serve wine or beer with their dinners?

Read this fast because before it gets cut.

Has anyone heard anything about the raid on Lounge 47 last Friday night?

Just after 10:00 pm, 12 City and State officials from NYPD, NYFD, DOB, DOH, DOL, among others barged in searching for God know what.

Apparently, they found nothing worse that a fly on the bar.

Oh yes, the infamous garden was closed.

46, each place you mentioned had its 500 ft hearing. Blend was in the unfortunate circumstance of being one of the first to require the hearing at a time when the issues around L47 seemed more persuasive. It also did not help that Blend’s original presented layout was much more bar than restaurant and that there was an unwillingness to reach out to neighbors. Blend dug its heals in for a fight by claiming racism – which was definitely not true. There was a general fear of the neighborhood becoming a drinking destination.

While that is still a concern, my own opinion has shifted to giving businesses a starting chance. The more militant view is that since cb2 and SLA are powerless once a license is issued you unfortunately need to be proactive. I can at least understand that view even if it’s not my approach.

It’s only natural to speculate who would have had the influence to make this raid take place. I have never heard of such a thing in my lifetime as a NY’er. It would be outrageous to me if a public official were responsible. I think the person who did do this owes an explanation for his/her actions. Amazing. Someone from the local press should sniff out this story.

Thank you liqcity. I am tired of all the trash talking myself. And it does not make me want to read the blog sometimes.

49, It might be hard for you to believe this, but there are still some people out there who like to go to bars and restaurants totalk quietly to friends without competing with these bright billboard-sized TVs blaring sports in your face. It’s crass and not conducive to a relaxed night out, especially at a pricey restaurant.

Some places don’t have televisions, like Lounge 47!
If you happen to stop by there, you can check out the new address numerals. We all admired them yesterday. They really conform to the legal requirement!
(The place is located on Vernon Boulevard, so if one is looking for a drinking destination, it’s pretty handy as long as alcohol remains legally available to responsible consumers. I guess the original owners named it like they did because it’s between 47th Road and 47th Avenue, right between two residential buildings, and although one might not guess it from the street there’s a sweet back garden with maybe 7 or 8 tables. Also the place is regularly monitored to ensure compliance with all statutes and regulations concerning food preparation, employee citizenship, urban entomology, and superfluous audio output, to name only a few. Enjoy!)

I went to this “Lounge 47″ establishment referred to above. I had no problem finding it due to the ideal size of the street address numbering. It was large enough to be seen from the street, yet small enough not to intrude. One might say it was the Goldilocks of building numbering. Once inside I enjoyed a nice quiet meal along with an alcoholic beverage. The wait staff were quite insistent on my absolute silence while seated in the rear yard. I found this most meddlesome and moved inside to escape their relentless pestering. Odd place this rear year… it receives the most severe monsoon storms with some regularity – even on clear days, yet most of the plants seem to be dying from lack of water. Nevertheless, I took comfort in knowing that the meal that I was about to ingest was sanctioned by the board of health and that it was to be consumed in structurally sound building. Aside from their persecution of me the workforce was quite efficient, well informed, properly compensated and generally above board. I make it a habit not to served by the ilk of illegal immigrants or in establishments were the minimum wage is not clearly posted for all employees to see. I am also quite disinclined to part company with my hard earned currency in some of the other fire traps that pass for bars in LIC. Here the exits were clearly identified which provided me with reasonable assurance that even in a slightly inebriated state that I would be able to egress expeditiously should the occasion call for it. At first I was concerned about going there given LIC’s frat party reputation, however the frequent visits by the police guaranteed that I would not come into contact with any unsavory types. I most assuredly would go again. It put my mind at ease knowing that this eatery had the full support and backing of all major NYC governmental agencies.

Sincerely,
R.L. Pennycook

Altogether a splendid evening, despite having missed the reassuring presence of our plain-clothed overseers. P’s temporarily un-b’d? Guess so.

Did I say “overseers?”

Well, I meant “helpers.”

I hate TVs in restaurants, especially that huge Tetaccio one facing the street as you walk by…

hint:
un-bunched

yes please