WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES JUNE 11, 2020 7
Queens restaurants, bars work to survive during pandemic
healthy environments.
WHERE AID HAS COME UP
SHORT
Gordon managed to receive
the federal government’s PPP
loan, which can be forgiven if the
business maintains their payroll.
But he said it’s “good, but it’s also
bad,” explaining that because most
of his staff are on unemployment,
they’re “just sitting on it.”
“If you use it, it becomes a loan,”
he said, which will become another
monthly expense.
Gordon added that 75 percent
of the $90,000 grant Neir’s Tavern
received from the de Blasio administration
back in January when they
helped them stay open, was taken
back due to the budget crisis the
pandemic has caused.
Even so, Gordon noted how some
of the first recipients of the PPP
loans went to national chains like
Shake Shack. Although many other
companies scrambled to return the
loans by mid-May, the Trump administration
has declined to name all the
recipients of the loans, which has
made business owners and elected
officials concerned over whether
most of the aid is going to big companies
with access to other kinds of
financing, according to Politico.
The city also created two small
business COVID-19 relief programs,
NYC Business Continuity Loan Fund
and NYC Employee Retention Grant,
managed by the Small Business Services
department. But last month,
the programs were criticized by
Queens lawmakers Senator Jessica
Ramos and Councilman Costa Constantinides
for mostly catering to
Manhattan-based businesses while
small shops across Queens struggle
to receive aid. Councilman Donovan
Richards later introduced a bill aiming
to address the disparity in the
allocation of small business grants
and loans.
Recently-appointed SBS Commissioner
Jonnel Doris told QNS his
main priority is to deepen their outreach
to the four boroughs outside
of Manhattan.
Irma Vargas, who runs Ricas
Pupusas Y Mas at 47-55 47th St. in
Woodside with her husband Daniel
and two daughters, said they didn’t
qualify for the federal government’s
PPP loan. She said she’s applied to
about seven different loans, but
hasn’t gotten a single one.
“We haven’t qualified for anything,
I don’t understand why,” Vargas said
in Spanish.
Ricas Pupusas Y Mas has been
open a little over a year. Instead of
opening everyday like they used to,
they decided to open from Thursday
to Sunday, as sales have plummeted
and the cost of food has increased.
But, Vargas said they were able
to count on Queens Together to get
some more business during the
height of the pandemic. Queens
Together was created by former
Chef Jonathan Forgash and Sunnyside
Shines Business Improvement
District Director Jamie-Faye Bean to
directly help local food businesses
during the health and economic
crisis while supporting frontline
workers.
The group has organized numerous
free meal deliveries for several
Queens hospitals and other essential
workers, and even established a
food pantry in Long Island City for
community members experiencing
food insecurity. Queens Together
does this by establishing a network
of donors and sponsors that allow
them to fund local restaurants, who
in turn help feed the community.
OPEN STREETS AND
OTHER PROPOSED
SOLUTIONS
New pieces of legislation meant to
provide COVID-19 relief for restaurants
and bars — introduced by City
Council and signed into law about
two weeks ago by De Blasio — are
now in effect.
The package of bills, hailed by
restaurant and bar owners as “urgently
needed, lifeline legislation,”
addressed some of the industry’s
major concerns, including imposing
limits on third-party food delivery
services, extending the suspension
of sidewalk cafe fee collection, and
protecting commercial tenants from
harassment and personal liability.
Imposing limits on third-party
delivery is a big step, as restaurateurs
voiced their critiques of how
delivery businesses cut into their
profits with fees of up to 30 percent.
Now, the new bills prohibit thirdparty
delivery services from charging
restaurants a fee for telephone
orders that don’t result in a sale and
capping fees greater than 15 percent
per order for delivery and 5 percent
per order for any other charge.
What’s more, some of the restaurateurs
QNS spoke with said they’ve
had issues that were out of their control,
like food arriving to customers
late because of other pick-ups or
mishandling of their food.
But the biggest idea set forth to
help restaurants during the time
of COVID-19 is to implement more
Open Streets throughout the city,
so eateries can have more space for
customers to dine in (or out).
The Open Streets program is
largely supported by restaurant
owners, City Council, and community
members.
The Old Astoria Neighborhood
Association is advocating for more
pedestrian-only streets to allow
social distancing for cafes and
restaurants.
“We will continue to advocate for our
local economic health,” OANA wrote
in one of their posts. “With everyone’s
support, we can overcome obstacles
that life has put before us. And we can
all emerge stronger than ever!”
But O’Reilly, owner of Yerman’s
Irish Pub, isn’t too keen on the idea,
saying neighbors might complain
about noise or crowding.
The city also announced plans for
restaurants to establish outdoor
seating, after Cuomo announced outdoor
dining will now be bumped up
to Phase 2. For New York City, Phase
2 might come as early as June 22, according
to Eater.
The plans for Phase 2 include
curbside seating without the need
for application or approval process
by allowing them to register and
self-certify online. In the coming
weeks and months, the city will also
identify new Open Streets on commercial
strips with a large number
of restaurants and bars.
HOW LONG IS TOO LONG?
New York City began Phase 1 of
reopening on June 8, meaning “low
risk” of infection businesses like construction,
can start up again. But restaurants
and bars, considered to have
“high risk” of infection, won’t reopen
until Phase 3. At least two weeks must
pass between each phase, meaning it
would still take until the fi rst week
of July for restaurants to reopen, according
to a report from Eater.
Prior to Memorial Day weekend,
de Blasio announced the city would
increase police presence in nine
“bar-heavy” restaurants, including
Astoria and Long Island City, in order
to enforce the city’s new campaign:
“Take out, don’t hang out.” But this
was put in place before the city released
any guidelines for reopening,
and could result in businesses facing
fines or other enforcements, according
to the New York Daily News.
So while the city and state begin
to alleviate the stay-at-home order,
there are still many factors restaurateurs
never thought they had to
consider — like keeping staff and
customers safe from contracting a
virus.
McSorley said fellow restaurateurs
have told her they don’t know
whether they’ll be able to open
again if the lockdown persists or
they have to comply with too many
restrictions.
“I think politicians need to think
about it, is Astoria going to start
to look like a ghost town? Because
some people will not open up again
because they just won’t be able to
manage with 30, 40 or 50 percent
capacity.” she said.
O’Reilly wants to open soon, “before
people get sick of not working.”
And for Vargas — who wants to
see pupusas (delicious, stuffed and
grilled tortillas) shine right next
to the taco — stopping just isn’t an
option.
“I don’t want to get sick, I think of
my daughters and my family … so
we take care of ourselves so that we
can keep working,” Vargas said. “We
have to keep fighting because there’s
no other option.”
Staff member Mo Nabil and Katch Astoria co-owner Roseann McSorley.
Photo by Angélica Acevedo
/WWW.QNS.COM
