Quantcast

Shooting sparks calls for Bellerose bar shuttering

Shooting sparks calls for Bellerose bar shuttering
By Ivan Pereira

Bellerose residents are calling for a bar with a past of rowdy incidents to be shut down following a shooting that took place over Thanksgiving weekend.

On Nov. 26, an unidentified man was standing outside the Blue Room bar at 248-13 Union Tnpk. around 2:40 a.m. smoking a cigarette when he was shot, police said. The victim was taken to North Shore-Long Island Jewish Hospital and survived the shooting, according to police.

The cause of the incident may have been a cause of the victim being at the wrong place at the wrong time, according to a police source.

“Apparently he heard the gunshots and the next thing he was on the floor hit,” the source said.

The investigation was ongoing and although no suspects had been named or arrested as of press time Tuesday, there is surveillance footage of the shooting, according to the source. The owners of the bar, which opened in January, did not return calls for comment.

In March, a 16-year-old boy was arrested on charges of viciously beating up another patron outside the bar after a reported argument, police said.

The shooting and the fight were just the tip of the iceberg in terms of disorderly conduct, according to residents. Cynthia Toohill, who lives nearby, said the police were frequently patrolling near the bar and she and her neighbors hear arguments break out in the early morning hours.

“We’re very concerned about the community,” she said.

Community Board 13 Chairman Bryan Block said he has been in talks with the 105th Precinct about the complaints that his office has been getting about the Blue Room and said they are working hard to crack down on disruptive incidents that take place there.

Block said the board does not have the power to force an establishment to close its doors, but it provides strong evaluations to the police and other agencies based on the feedback of its constituents.

“We will do whatever we have to do as an advisory board to improve the quality of life,” he said.

Reach reporter Ivan Pereira by e-mail at ipereira@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4546.