16 The Queens Courier • july 25, 2013 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com Terrace franchisees look to invest st of the 2013 THE QUEENS QueensCourier.com Place USTA gets A-OK from Council Will give $10M to Flushing Meadows Our goal is to get to know you and your needs so we can build a better doctor-patient relationship. www.healthcarechoicesny.org 21-10 Borden Avenue Long Island City, NY 11101 Take 7 train to Hunters Point or G train to 21 St �� W alk in for a visit with a primary care doctor…you don’t need an appointment �� Primary care, dentistry and psychiatry �� Multilingual staff �� A ffordable sliding scale fee �� Online services available �� Students welcome! Convenient, affordable and comprehensive health, dental, and mental health care right in your neighborhood. Schedule your appointment today! (718) 784-5696 | Mon - Fri, 9 - 5 BY MELISSA CHAN mchan@queenscourier.com Terrace on the Park operators want to upgrade the interior and exterior of the facility, and in order to do that, are looking to get a new lease on the popular and historic catering hall in Flushing Meadows- Corona Park. Terrace on the Park’s contract with the city’s Parks Department expires next March, officials said. The department has issued a new Request for Proposals (RFP). “While the current concessionaire has invested more than $8 million in capital improvements, exceeding the requirements of their license agreement, it is clear that additional infrastructure investments are needed,” a Parks spokesperson said. George Makkos, co-owner of Terrace on the Park, said they have invested $12 million so far to better the catering hall. But the 100,000-square-foot building needs “millions” of dollars more in capital improvements which cannot be done under the looming lease expiration date, Makkos said. “Given the size and complexity of the building, the money that we will need to spend will never be recovered in the time, in the lease that we have left,” he said. Makkos said he and co-owner Jimmy Kaloidis want to retain and upgrade the catering hall. “We’re trying to extend the lease for a new term so we can spend what’s needed and a lot more to bring the building to a state which is sufficient so it can compete in the wedding and corporate banquet business as it should,” he said. The city must launch a procedural public bidding process. “It’s a huge building. Everything becomes a big deal,” Makkos said. “A simple remodeling could cost a million dollars.” The proposal process is competitive but open to any entities, including the current concessionaire, the Parks Department said. Terrace on the Park was built for the 1964 World’s Fair and has been a catering hall for nearly 50 years. The current contract was scheduled to expire in March 2020 but was amended to expire in March 2014, officials said. A Parks Department spokesperson said the change is not related to any development proposals at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park. BY MELISA CHAN mchan@queenscourier.com The U.S. Tennis Association (USTA) has agreed to pledge more than $10 million to Flushing Meadows- Corona Park as part of a deal struck with the City Council. “This deal was a long time coming,” said Councilmember Julissa Ferreras. “I can say with confidence that we will all benefit from this expansion.” USTA officials needed the council’s final vote to go through with the $500 million plan to expand the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center at the park by 0.68 acres. They agreed to commit to ongoing community outreach programs, create an annual job fair for Queens residents and give 5,000 free Arthur Ashe Day tickets to Queens kids. The more than $10 million pledged by the USTA would go toward public safety enhancements at the park, Ferreras said. “There are still details that we are currently working on and we will work on as a community for weeks to come,” she said. The plans include hiring more local residents and preventing cars from parking on the grass. But many in the borough remain opposed to developers taking city parkland. The USTA was not originally required to give back any land lost in the project. But officials ultimately agreed to transfer ownership of two parcels of parkland the USTA has been renting to the Parks Department. Park advocates criticized the plan as giving back land that was already accessible to the public. Ferreras said the project would create $750 million in revenue annually and provide thousands of jobs. THE COURIER/File photo The lease for Terrace on the Park will be up for bidding soon.
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