Storefronts in Downtown Far Rockaway have a new look thanks to a city improvement program. Local leaders, including City Council Member Donovan Richards, took a victory lap Wednesday to see local renovated storefronts.
The makeovers were partially courtesy of a Downtown Far Rockaway Storefront Improvement Program. The city’s Department of Small Business Services (SBS) matched 75% of what the small business spend on redoing their storefronts.
“It lifts the community but it also attracts new customers to the businesses and new customers to the corridor and that's the whole goal of the program,” said SBS Commissioner Gregg Bishop.
“I never really believe anyone is going to invest, put money in here for us, for the owners of the stores. I always, whatever I did, I did on my own like everybody else. But it's a beautiful thing,” added Tino Venezia of Tino's Unisex Hair Styling.
The storefront makeovers are part of a larger initiative to revitalize the Downtown Far Rockaway area.