40 THE QUEENS COURIER • BUZZ • AUGUST 27, 2020 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
buzz
Martin Van Buren H.S. launches digital cookbook
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Martin Van Buren High School in
Queens Village is raising money to help
students and families hit hardest by the
COVID-19 pandemic through its collaborative
Shiro of Japan restaurant shutters Glendale location
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
aacevedo@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Shiro of Japan, located at Th e Shops at
Atlas Park in Glendale, has permanently
closed its doors aft er a 14-year run.
“We made it through a lot of diff erent
situations — economic recession, shopping
center bankruptcy, that restructuring,
and everything else — but COVID-
19 put the nail on the coffi n,” said Shiro
co-owner Peter Faccibene.
Th e restaurant is one of about 13 restaurants
that have permanently closed its
doors in the “World’s Borough,” according
to Eater‘s running list of New York Citywide
closures since COVID-19 forced the
city to shut down in March.
Th e longstandingtraditional sushi and
hibachi restaurant,what they call the “fi rst
name in New York sushi,” established its
main location on Long Island in 1972.
Th ey then expanded into Queens, and
had agrab-and-go post at Grand Central
Terminal.
Th eir Grand Central Terminal location,
which opened in 2013, closed shortly
prior to New York City’s COVID-19 lockdown.
Faccibene said that location saw 30
percent decrease in sales in the last three
years due to many factors, including the
city’s administration “inability” to help
businesses there and address the homeless
population seeking refuge at the historic
station.
Th eir location in Glendale, where
Faccibene said they invested “several million
dollars,” was sustaining itself well
before the pandemic hit the city.
“We were in a good momentum, we
kept building and growing,” he said. “But
this hit us hard.”
Shiro at Atlas Park is located on the second
fl oor of the shopping center, which
made it logistically diffi cult to off er outdoor
dining. While they tried takeout
and delivery for a few weeks, they weren’t
making ends meet.
Faccibene also attributes the increase
in minimum wage (at their Queens location
they had about 40 employees), taxes
and rent as to why the business couldn’t
keep up.
But the business owner said the city’s
lawmakers aren’t introducing policies
that allow for businesses to prosper.
“Th e policies aren’t making anything
conducive,” Faccibene said. “We’re never
opening up anything again in New York
City.”
Last month, small business owners
across Queens called for immediate
fi nancial relieff rom lawmakers to off set
loses brought on by the economic crisis as
a consequence of the pandemic.
In comparison, their Carle Place, Long
Island locale has maintained itself even
during the pandemic.
Restaurants on Long Island were
allowed to reopen indoor dining at 50
percent capacity in their phase three,
which began on June 23. New York City
offi cials have yet to announce plans or
a date for when indoor dining will be
allowed in the fi ve boroughs.
“We have a very loyal following,”
Faccibene said. “We still get a lot of people
driving in from Queens every weekend.”
digital cookbook.
Th e Martin Van Buren High School
Alumni Alliance in partnership with
Commonpoint Queens launched its
“Give Hope to Help” initiative and the
MVBHS Comfort Food Cookbook.
Th e project resulted in an exceptional
collection of 168 special recipes, representing
60 countries — submitted by
teachers, administration, students, parents
and alumni showcasing the incredibly
diverse community in the “World’s
Borough.”
Steve Wilson, MVBHS alum and president
of the Martin Van Buren Alumni
Alliance, said the severe impact of the
COVID-19 pandemic on MVB students
and staff led the alliance to quickly
mobilize to fi nd a way to help show their
support for those who were struggling
the most.
“We wanted to not just help to raise
desperately needed funds to assist MVB
families, but also to galvanize the community
behind this eff ort, giving hope
to those in desperate need,” Wilson said.
“We also wanted to create something
that would both honor our diverse community
and share in our rich cultures.”
According to Wilson, they’re proud to
serve the school in many capacities, but
this issue in particular stands out due to
the pain and suff ering they hope to help
alleviate.
“We created this cookbook to raise
money and awareness of the collective
plight of the Queens community-atlarge
and the Van community. We recognize
even when the virus has fi nally
retreated, many fi nancial, physical
and psychological scars will remain and
this undertaking is one small thing we
as individuals can do to help those most
impacted by the COVID crisis,” Wilson
said.
Wilson said he is grateful to
Commonpoint Queens for partnering
with the school on the project helping
to provide emergency cash assistance
to Van students and families — including
everything else they do at Van Buren
such as attendance interventions, mental
health counseling, community service
opportunities and mentoring.
“From day one of Commonpoint
Queens’ partnership with Martin Van
Buren, the school’s administration welcomed
us. Our collaborations on many
joint initiatives have improved not only
the 500+ students participating in our
fi ve programs currently at MVB but also
the overall success of the larger school
community,” said Heather Liverpool,
community school director.
Th e Van Buren Alumni Alliance is
asking the community to join them
alongside their partners, Commonpoint
Queens and People’s Bank, as they help
their neighbors far and wide travel the
world from their kitchen.
Copies of the e-cookbook are available
at www.mvbhsaa.com.Interested corporate
partners can contact Steve Wilson
at mvbhsalumns@gmail.com.
Photo via Google Maps
Shiro of Japan was located in The Shops at Atlas Park, on 80-40 Cooper Ave.
Photo by Brian Greenspan
The MVBHS Comfort Food Cookbook is a collection of 168 special recipes, representing 60 countries,
which were submitted by teachers, administration, students, parents and alumni.
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