Back in May of 2011 the city announced it had found a restaurateur to run the restaurant it wants to put in the pavilion on the north end of Union Square. Then in September of 2011 it scratched those plans. Then in March 2012 it announced the 5 Napkin guys would be running the joint. But that too may have been a bit premature. A Walk in the Park is reporting that judge has issued a preliminary injunction that prevents the City and Parks Department from moving forward with the plans as they didn't have State legislative approval.
In the January 8th decision, New York State Supreme Court Justice Arthur F. Engoron barred any work on the pavilion for now, and noted that the plaintiffs (which includes A Walk in the Park's Geoffrey Croft through NYC Park Advocates) had a good chance of winning as the restaurant doesn't show much sign of being for the people. "Plaintiffs’ claim that defendants ;are attempting to create a high-end destination restaurant, as opposed to a public amenity that will serve ordinary park visitors,' rings true," the judge wrote. "The Pavilion restaurant’s proposed prices would make broad swaths of the public think twice before entering." And he went on!
"All things considered, including the small size and large crowds of Union Square Park; the commercial character of the encircling neighborhood; the plethora of nearby restaurants of every description just beyond its perimeter; the prominence and importance of the Pavilion; the restricted views therein; and the operating hours and prices to be charged by the proposed restaurant, and based on the record at this stage of the litigation, this Court finds that plaintiffs likely will succeed in proving that the proposed restaurant would be ‘in’ the park, but not ‘of’ the park, would be a ‘park restaurant’ in name only, and would not serve a ‘park purpose.'"
The judge also questioned whether the City's 15-year license for the restaurant was legal, writing: "In the final analysis, the Concession Agreement appears to be a lease masquerading as a license."
The fight over the pavilion, which many once thought Danny "Shake Shack" Mayer was coveting, has been raging for years as the city and Parks Department have tried to make it a money maker and locals have pushed for it to be used as a year-round recreation space for the public. Expect that fight to continue.
Regarding the injunction Hilary Meltzer, Deputy Chief for the cit's Environmental Law Division, said: "The restaurant in Union Square is a proper park use, which we are confident does not constitute alienation of parkland. We believe the decision is incorrect, and we plan to appeal once the order is entered."
