It was a beautiful day to celebrate Beach 116th Street! On Sunday, May 31, the community came out to Rockaway Park’s commercial strip to enjoy the annual Beach 116th Summer Kickoff.
Locals and visitors enjoyed a day on Beach 116th, stopping by the local shops and restaurants, enjoying local and out-of-town vendors that lined the street, listening to live music by the Road Kill Country Outlaws and tunes spun by DJ Rob Pisani, and embracing the community event on a beautiful Sunday.
Councilwoman Joann Ariola, whose office helped organize the event, thanked to her chief of staff Phyllis Inserillo, along with the Rockaway Civic Association and the Beach 116th Merchants Association, pointed out the ways they have been working together to make the block better; from the new median treatments around the trees, now filled with flowers, the MTA stores finally leased and ready for renewal, and upcoming improvements like adding a large clock to the median, which the Merchants held a 50/50 to raise funds.
“This is what hard work gets you. This is what dedication gets you. This is what love for your community gets you. And that’s what these people and our office have—love for your community. Thank you for everything you do,” Ariola told the Merchants including Michael McMahon, owner of Rogers, Rob Pisani, owner of Bagel & Barista Station, Meat Up Grill and Crustinos owner Michael Fiore, Matt Mazzone of Mazzone Ace Hardware and Denise Diehm, owner of The Gift is Love.
After the successful event, Ariola said, “What an amazing day on Beach 116th Street for the Summer Kick Off Festival! Thank you to everyone who came out to support the tremendous work that the Beach 116th Merchants and the Rockaway Civic puts in to host these events for the community.”
For future updates about Beach 116th, including details about the Fall Festival, follow @b_116th_rockaway on Instagram.
Story and Photos
By Katie McFadden
