Post-Sandy, Rockaway Restaurants Want More Parking

The owners of Bungalow Bar and Thai Rock, two beloved Rockaway restaurants that were hard hit by Hurricane Sandy, are teaming up to ask the MTA for a parking lot. They've been eyeing a vacant MTA lot nearby, and hope that the extra parking will help them attract as many customers as possible during the long-awaited summer season. The two restaurants lost hundreds of thousands of dollars in equipment and business because of the storm. Bungalow Bar owner Sean Tubridy says this will be "a make-or-break summer" for them.

At the moment, the MTA has told both owners that the vacant lot they had in mind would be "dangerous to pedestrians using the waterfront promenade" if made into a parking lot. Senator Joseph Addabbo is meeting with the MTA later this week to discuss the issue and see if they can come up with some other good parking options. Bungalow Bar reopened its deck last weekend, and Thai Rock is back to limited service.
·Two Rockaway Restaurant Proprietors Plead With MTA [NYDN]
·All Coverage of Post-Sandy NYC [ENY]
[Photo: Claire Nugent]