NYC Parks and Brooklyn Bazaar co-owners Belvy Klein and Aaron Broudo presented two weeks ago at January’s Brooklyn Community Board 1 meeting on the plan to bring a “family-friendly” restaurant to the rear of the McCarren Park house by spring 2021 following $1.2 million in renovations.
The goal is to maintain and improve the historic brick structure that was originally built in 1911 and was last renovated in 1938 when the McCarren Park Pool was under construction.
“This will still be a parks-use building as well as a public amenity. People will be able to go into this building and see it, and enjoy it for what it is, and enjoy it both either as a patron or not,” Jonathan Chesley of INCA Architecture said during the presentation.
All of the building’s existing windows and doors will be replaced to be energy efficient; ramps and entrances will be made ADA accessible; the bathrooms will also be renovated and increased in number to have six toilet facilities, along with two baby-changing stations.
The restaurant will have two outdoor patios facing the rear of the park as well as indoor seating.
A new ‘accessory building’ to the eastern side of the main building will hold supplies and will make more room for the restaurant and bathrooms.
Klein and Broudo also own and operate the popular Riis Park Beach Bazaar and the Brooklyn Bazaar location on Greenpoint Avenue that recently closed due to the landlord not offering a reasonable lease renewal agreement.
As Brooklyn Paper reports, some concerns were raised over the selling alcohol in McCarren Park, but Domino Park’s alcohol setup has so far proven successful:
And the chairman of the board’s Liquor License Committee said he was worried about the restaurant’s open plan, saying patrons may wander off into the park — cocktails in hand — a concern which previously led operators of Tacocina in Williamsburg’s Domino Park to install a fence there to keep drinking diners inside.
“Tacocina had to close off its space so people didn’t go wandering out of their restaurant with their margaritas — now you’re saying this space is just wide open for people,” said Tom Burrows.
They owners said they would hire a security guard to keep patrons in-line and Chesley added that the aforementioned bushes clearly demarcate proper drinking boundaries.
I think it’s long time over due living in the Northside for close to 60years hooray hope it’s good us people still like to eat pizza hot dogs fries burgers MMM good
lame as fuck
Turn it into something more inclusive like a community center or a museum or some shit man
another fucking place that is going to specifically cater to gentrifiers and hipsters of high income.
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If there is loud music playing on the patio I’m going to lose it. The park is the only place we can come to hear birds and peace- actual nature. Where else are we supposed to go? Another disgusting nature sell off to make more money, we have barely anywhere to go to begin with.
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