Village: New Massapequa Park Business Not Up to Code

A new neighborhood burger joint opened briefly without a certificate of occupancy and was quickly closed down, village of Massapequa Park officials said.

The Massapequa Varsity Grill on Merrick Road near Massapequa High School has not provided the documentation needed to open for business, according to those officials.

Varsity Grill Co-owner Dominick Calarco, confirmed to Patch on Thursday that his business had been closed down by authorities, but said he expected  the business would pass a Thursday night inspection. He would not say why it had been shut down.

But on Friday morning the village said the grill, a diner, with booths  and a counter painted in Massapequa High School's blue and gold colors,still hadn't provided the village with the  documentation needed to get a certificate of occupancy.

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According to Village Administrator Peggy Caltabiano, the business has yet to provide a plumbing certificate, a document which certifies that plumbing work is up to code.

Varsity Grill did not build according to the plan the originally filed with the village and has yet to file updated plans, officials said.

Despite not being up to code, Varsity Grill did attempt to open for business in late December, according to Caltabiano, but was quickly shut them down.

Calarco, accused officials of selective enforcement, but Caltabiano and Mayor James Altadonna insisted the Village wants to bring new businesses into the area and said that it's unusual for a business to take this long to remedy this type of situation.

"We can work as quickly as he works," Altadonna said. Caltabiano said she believes the owners may not have fully understood the requirements needed to get the certificate of occupancy.

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