Politics & Government

Malverne Board Reviews Plans for Proposed Restaurant, Parking Concerns Raised

Local officials, merchants and residents air concerns about the plans impact on parking in the area.

A plan to turn the mostly in Malverne into a restaurant with office space went before the village board last month but was met by concerns from officials, merchants and residents about its impact on parking in the area.

Melconian Properties LLC. presented its proposal for a 114-seat tapas-style restaurant with approximately 10,000 sq. ft. of offices and four on-site parking spaces at 356 Hempstead Avenue at a Special Exception Hearing held on Oct. 20.

According to the village code, the board of trustees would have to authorize special exceptions for the building’s use to be changed from strictly business to a combination of offices and a first floor restaurant with outside seating. They would also have to make an exception regarding parking since the plans call for a minimum of 99 spaces but the applicant is proposing four on the property and relying on existing public parking to provide the rest.

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Nassau County Legis. Vincent Muscarella, serving as the lawyer for both the building owner, Melconian, and the potential tenant, Happy Hour Enterprises Inc., explained that the two parties signed a five-year lease with a five year option. Happy Hour agreed to construct and operate a restaurant and bar area in a portion of the building if all necessary permits and approvals were secured from the village of Malverne.

Muscarella described the proposed restaurant as “ attractive, sophisticated” and said it would be “marketed to families and professionals from Malverne and the surrounding communities.”

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He added,” It’s hoped that this restaurant will cater primarily to a 30 or older crowd, families and those older who are looking for some light fair and dinner.”

The eatery would have a bar or “lounge area” with approximately 20 seats, and a separate dining area with a baby grand piano, where four nights a week a performer would entertain diners. It would operate six days a week, for lunch and dinner (possibly closed Monday or Tuesday) and open at 11 a.m. and close at 11 p.m. Sunday, 1 a.m. Thursday through Saturday and midnight all other days, according to Muscarella. The staff could range from 10 people to as much as 20 at night.

It would be the type of place where you would “order individual plates and maybe you’ll have a beer or maybe a wine or maybe a wine cordial,” Muscarella added. “We are not looking to open a club…a dance parlor…[or] even a sports bar.”

The basement area would be converted into small business offices ideally suited for small entrepreneuers or accountants, Henry Monteverde, the architect hired by the applicants, told the board. The exact number of tenants for the basement has not been determined yet.

“We won’t know that until he starts leasing it out, “Muscarella added. “The only perspective tenants that he has the moment is the restaurant.”

Mayor Patricia Norris McDonald was absent from the meeting, suffering from the flu, but Deputy Mayor Joseph Hennessy grilled Muscarella on his clients’ plan.

“It’s not this little place that you’re talking about….it’s a large restaurant,” Hennessy said. He also pointed out that although at its peak the building had housed 79 employees, most of these workers took public transportation.

Bruce Moren, a licensed professional engineer, addressed the parking concerns, explaining that he looked at 233 available spots in four lots (one facing San-Dee Lanes, two on the north side of the train tracks and one near Francis Street) and public spaces along Hempstead and Alwood Avenues, Trinity Place and Francis Street. He monitored the spaces at 45-minute intervals on a Friday and Saturday in September and factored in the parking needs of the proposed restaurant and office space.

“There is sufficient parking spaces available to support the proposed uses,” he stated to the board.

Hennessy doubted the findings, saying, “I’m around pretty much every day….and on a good day by the movies and the railroad...and the merchant parking I don’t see any empty parking spaces.”

A member of the public stated that the numbers may not reflect the normal parking conditions because the study was conducted during a Jewish holiday.

Trustees Michael Bailey and Patricia Callahan also questioned the numbers used in the parking study and a handful of residents and local merchants spoke up about the lack of spots that already exists in the village’s business district.

Sandra Ingrafia, who has owned SanDee Lanes bowling alley for the past 22 years, said the parking survey also needs to account for the fact that businesses like hers and the movie theater pick up during the colder months when people are looking for indoor entertainment. The supermarket also gets busier during the holidays, she added, saying,“You can’t just pick a number in September and say that’s how many spaces are available.”

Jerry Hughes, owner of Connolly Station, said some of his older customers already complain about the parking and have even stopped coming because they can’t handle the walk.

“If lose that parking [at night] I’m going to lose those people as well,” he said. “You’ve got a supermarket that opened up. He’s trying to make a go of it and this kind of parking is going to kill him….These laws are in effect to protect the village and to protect the merchants who are in the village, which I think the board should do.”

"I would love to see that building rented," Henry Stampfel, owner of Malverne Cinema 4 and president of the Merchants Association, said, "but we can’t do it at the expense of others.”

The applicants will conduct further parking studies and look at ones that have been conducted in the past and then present the proposal again to the board later this month. Stay tuned for more details.


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