JUNE 15 C R Y D E R P O I N T Board approves variance for Scobee parking lot BY TERENCE M. CULLEN Deli’s contest in honor of Bee champ BY MELISSA CHAN Spelling whizzes or news junkies could land themselves a free matzo ball. Ben’s Kosher Deli of Bayside is offering a free knaidel to any customer who buys a quart of chicken soup and can spell the word that sealed a local teen’s recent victory at the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Correctly spelling knaidel — a Yiddish word of German origin that means “dumpling” — gave Arvind Mahankali his victory on May 23. It was the M.S. 74 eight grader’s fourth and final showing at the competition after finishing third the last two years. “Knaidel may be hard to spell, but it is definitely delicious,” said Ronnie Dragoon, founder and owner of Ben’s Deli. Keen customers can save about $1.50 if they nail the spelling. A quart of chicken soup costs $7.99 on its own. The promotion runs until June 30 at the participating Ben’s in the Bay Terrace Shopping Center. It is located at 211-37 26th Avenue. The restaurant has given away more than 50 knaidels since the promotion began on June 6, managers said. Another Ben’s location in Rego Park recently announced a new dish named after the local spelling whiz. Arvind dined on his “mini knaidels” with Congressmember Grace Meng on June 9. The lawmaker also gave the spelling champ an American flag that was flown over the U.S. Capitol in his honor. “Only in Queens, the most diverse county in America, can an Indian-American kid win a national contest for correctly spelling the Yiddish word for matzo ball,” Meng said. “It is a tremendous honor to congratulate him on his outstanding achievement. He has made our borough and our city and state proud.” Community Board 11 approved a variance that would shift parking at the former Scobee Diner site. The variance, which moves the parking lot to the back of the property, will improve safety, said Matt Carmody, a traffic engineer for new owner Lion Bee Equities. He said otherwise, drivers would have to back on to Northern Boulevard when leaving the popular eatery, thus holding up traffic and leading to accidents. The variance will also convert some parking spaces in a residential zone to commercial spots. There will be 17 parking spaces in the new lot, including one handicapped space. Scobee’s shut down two years ago when restaurant owners failed to reach agreement on purchasing the 252- 29 Northern Boulevard property from the landowners. Lion Bee Equities, a Great Neck-based company, has proposed transforming the site into a CitiBank on the first floor and a dentist’s office on the second. The CitiBank would include a drive-thru ATM with a Little Neck Parkway entrance. Drivers would exit onto Northern Boulevard. The community board’s Little Neck Land Use Committee originally told the developer to bring back a plan without a drive-thru ATM. But board members said removing the ATM turned out to be a non-starter. Residents and some board members are worried the plan will turn Little Neck Parkway into a heavily congested area. Vivien Lenk, who lives two blocks from the site, said the current plan could pose safety risks at the busy intersection with cars coming in and out. “It’s really an accident, or many accidents, waiting to happen,” she said. The board voted 24-18 to approve the variance on June 10. THE COURIER/File photo Community Board 11 approved a variance to move parking to the back of the former Scobee Diner site. www.queenscourier.com | JUNE 2013 | CRYDER POINT COURIER 15
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