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www.qns.com I LIC COURIER I MARCH 2018 27
Arabascio also said the area has not
experienced a shut down like this so it
was difficult to prepare. In 2006, a nine-day
blackout devastated businesses in
western Queens. Former Mayor Michael
Bloomberg announced that the Small
Business Administration would give
emergency $10,000 low-interest loans
to affected shops.
Arabascio and other business owners
argue that the city should replicate those
efforts here.
“The MTA can get to the city and ask
them to give us relief. They made a $150
million project. Spend a couple million
on the businesses to relieve the people
here,” Platis said. “If I knew that the sta-tion
was closing in advance, I would do
something. Close my place for two to three
months and renovate. Do something and
use this time. Not dying every day. It’s a
slow death.”
Owners of Irish Whiskey Bar at 28-48
31st St. say business is down 50 percent
during the daytime and 30 percent at
night. Barry O’Reilly, the co-owner and
bookkeeper, acknowledged that the
100-year-old station needed repairs but
said the construction equipment “just
showed up one morning.”
“We’re losing a lot of guys,” O’Reilly
said. “We’re here building the business
for five years. But now obviously people
can’t get off at 30th Avenue. If you’re
getting off on Broadway, you’re gonna
go to a bar on Broadway. There’s noth-ing
you can do; you just gotta suffer
through.”
Co-owner Liam O’Reilly scrolled
through pictures on his phone of cars and
construction equipment taking up valuable
parking spots near his bar. He was also
alarmed to hear that as of January, the
MTA announced they had completed 25
percent of the work.
“They said they were 25 percent com-pleted
after four months and they said
they were on schedule. So you can do the
math on that,” he said. “They’re supposed
to finish in five months.”
The MTA has said they are still on
schedule to finish in June.
Platis, who has had to lay off three em-ployees
since his revenue has declined by
40 to 50 percent, said the area resembles
a desert at night, which is troublesome
for a 24/7 diner.
He is hoping that his suppliers and
landlord are “patient” because he is al-ready
falling behind on payments. He
tries to keep up appearances, stocking
the window displays with donuts and fresh
pastries every day.
“If I don’t sell the donuts the same day,
I have to throw them away,” Platis said.
But leaving his front window empty is not
an option. “For the few people coming in,
I have to have something.”
Instead of brewing four pots of coffee
a day for customers, he only brews one,
he said. Platis added that he has racked
up parking tickets because he is forced
to double park to load in food.
“I have to carry my stuff half a block
away,” he said. “I had my car full of per-ishable
things and I cannot find a place
to unload.”
Each business owner recounted stories
of friends in the neighborhood who were
also struggling — Opa at 28-44 31st St.
closed down because the owner could not
keep up with rents, according to McSorley
from Katch; Petey’s Burger at 30-17 30th
Ave. is now relying on takeout orders
because in-store customers are almost
non-existent, according to Platis from
Tastee Corner.
Khan said that though the issue is
discussed within the business community,
Astoria residents may not fully realize the
extent of the problem.
“The business owners, we know what
the situation is, we know how we’re hurting
but I don’t think the community under-stands,”
he said. “It’s not their problem.
I understand and I don’t hold them ac-countable
for it but I think if they knew,
people would be upset as well.”
