www.BXTimes.com BRONX WEEKLY March 15, 2020 10
Morris Park Inn reintroduces the neighborhood bar
BY KYLE VUILLE
“Sometimes you want to go
where everybody knows your
name…”
The Morris Park Inn may not
have Ted Danson slinging the
drinks, but the neighborhood
bar located at 1024 Morris Park
Avenue still has the charm of
Cheers and maybe a feisty bar
maiden or two like Carla.
For many years, Doyles Pub
was the bar where neighbors,
families, and friends frequented
to share pints and laughter.
Co-owner Joe Lacerra and
his wife Giovanna were patrons
of Doyles and were saddened to
see the bar close several years
ago. “All of our memories were
made there,” Giovanna said.
As fate would have it, the couple
moved to Morris Park, but
quickly realized there wasn’t a
good old-fashioned pub to meet
friends anymore, but like the
Phoenix rising from the ashes,
the MP Inn set afoot.
Lacerra, owns a body shop,
but possessed the life long dream
of having a neighborhood bar.
Good friends, Lacerra and
Stephen Poli, an oil truck driver
for many years, and now coowner,
decided it was time to fi ll
the community’s needs of having
a “Cheers” like establishment.
“Joey and I know a lot of the
community, but then Stephen
came into the picture with another
generation of people as
well,” Giovanna said.
After muscling through
building permits, licensing,
cosmetic renovations and fresh
kitchen equipment, The Morris
Park Inn opened this past November.
Giovanna added the earthy
tones of paint inside the MP inn
are meant to make everyone feel
warm and welcomed.
“We wanted to keep it Irish,
Italian, but also modern and
most importantly, make everyone
who walks in here feel welcome,”
Giovanna said.
With such a focus on community,
Giovanna said her goal
is use the bar as a platform for
fundraisers, food drives and
events.
“My goal is to just educate myself
better,” Giovanna said. “I’m
always thinking of new ways to
incorporate the community.”
Customer Nicky Ace (l) and bartender Mala Reignz. Photo Schneps Media/Kyle Vuille
Like any good neighborhood
bar, the MP Inn offers a full food
menu and wide variety of liquor.
Poli highlighted the bar has
already become known for their
jumbo pretzels and curated selection
of scotch.
The man behind the good eats,
John Denizard, Executive Chef,
said he’s pleased with the kitchen
operations and the family atmosphere.
He pointed out all the
food and produce are purchased
locally in the community.
“It’s a great space with great
people,” Denizard said. “Just a
place to order food, have a couple
drinks and hang for the night and
it’s all neighborhood people.”
Denizard said the kitchen will
soon have a new Sunday brunch
menu.
The bar and restaurant also offers
delivery at a $20 minimum.
“We just started delivering
and we want to make it a big thing
for the hospitals in the area,” Poli
said.
Poli said Tuesday Karaoke
nights have been popular and
Thursday Jukebox bingo has
been drawing in a crowd as well.
The Morris Park Inn is on
Facebook and Instagram for patrons
to see the latest specials
and events.
Residents support ferry expansion to Ferry Point Park
BY KYLE VUILLE
Commuting to Manhattan from
the East Bronx will be easier and
cheaper than ever as the dream of
a Throggs Neck/Ferry Point ferry
service takes shape, with construction
expected to begin in 2021.
Representatives from the Mayor’s
Offi ce of Environmental Coordination,
NYC Economic Development
Corp, and AKRF, an environmental
impact study company, outlined
the study’s fi ndings to the public
last Tuesday night at Villa Barone
Manor and received feedback from
the attendees as part of their fourstop
tour to review the ferry expansion
plan across the city.
There are currently seven active
ferry routes operating in NYC with
21 landings spanning from Rockaway
in Queens to Soundview in
the Bronx. The Soundview landing
started ferrying customers in 2018
and has seen ridership far above
what projections forecasted.
The plan is to install a 34-foot by
90-foot ferry barge capable of holding
up to 350 people, running from
Wall Street to East 34th Street to
East 90th Street to Soundview and
fi nally to Throggs Neck in under 30
minutes. The fare would match the
standard $2.75 subway fare.
The landing’s location would be
in Ferry Point Park, a strip of land
just west of the Hutchinson River
Parkway , that looks out on the East
River with views of the city.
While the proposed expansion
plan still has many hurdles to clear
before construction can commence,
the panel Tuesday night revealed
their fi ndings through the draft
Supplemental Environmental Impact
Statement (SEIS). There are 20
different areas of study under the
City Environmental Quality Review,
but the three discussed at the
meeting were Open Space, Urban
Design and Visual Resources and
Transportation.
The conclusions of the three categorized
studies found that the operation
of a ferry at Ferry Point Park
would have no adverse effects to the
park’s attributes and operations.
The meeting also examined the
improvements the existing parking
lot would get to accommodate rider
parking. The parking lot is currently
riddled with bad potholes.
The EDC’s plan is to run a shuttle
from the parking lot to the boat
slip.
Members of the audience, including
Councilman Mark Gjonaj, were
concerned how those without cars
would be able to fi nd their way to
the ferry boat.
“You’re relying solely on vehicles
driving to the ferry, there is
very little ability based on the area
for foot traffi c to walk to the ferry,”
Gjonaj said.
Currently, the two closest buses
to Ferry Point Park are the Q50 and
Q44 (SBS), which would still leave
riders with a lengthy walk.
One attendee, Michael Kaess,
spoke up about creating safe cycling
paths to Ferry Point. He suggested
that the EDC speak with the Parks
Department about a biking/walking
path running from Harding Avenue
to Ferry Point that would run
through Trump Links golf course
and a portion of Ferry Point Park.
Written comments on the Draft
Supplement Environmental Impact
Statement may be submitted until 5
p.m. on March 16, 2020 and may be
submitted at the public hearings, by
email, or by regular mail to: Mayor’s
Offi ce of Environmental Coordination,
Attn: Denise Pisani, Deputy
Director, 253 Broadway, 14th Floor,
New York, N.Y. 10007, or dpisani@
cityhall.nyc.gov
Map of the planned ferry expansion throughout the boroughs. NYC EDC
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