By Anna Gustafson
The owners of a Fresh Meadows bar have covered up an awning that drew criticism from elected officials for depicting the silhouette of a woman who appears to be naked and unconscious after the city Department of Buildings said the sign needed to be removed because it was too large.
“We covered it up with a canvas so the part that was offending everyone is not visible anymore,” said Eva Serrano, co-owner of Cheap Shots Sports Bar & Lounge at 149-05 Union Turnpike. “It’s coming down by the end of the week and we’re replacing it.”
Serrano said she and her partner, Louis Abreu, want to apologize to the community for the image, which will be replaced with an awning that has no picture.
“We’re sorry it offended the families in the neighborhood,” said Serrano, a Briarwood resident. “I have children myself, so I completely understand the concerns. We’re a local neighborhood bar and we didn’t want to offend anyone.”
The city DOB issued three violations to Cheap Shots and mandated that the establishment replace the awning because it was too large.
The co-owner said she and Abreu had not approved the awning before their designer erected it on Cheap Shots, which opened in March.
“I personally didn’t like it,” Serrano said.
City Councilmen James Gennaro (D-Fresh Meadows) and Mark Weprin (D-Oakland Gardens) as well as state Assemblyman Rory Lancman (D-Fresh Meadows) wrote a letter May 5 to Abreu asking him to remove the awning.
“We believe that the image on your awning, which depicts the silhouette of a young woman lying on her back in a very suggestive position, is lewd, utterly repulsive to the families that live in this community, and unforgivably degrading to women,” according to the letter authored by Gennaro and co-signed by Weprin and Lancman.
Weprin also penned a letter to Mayor Michael Bloomberg expressing his outrage over the awning.
“We’re pleased they saw this was a problem and a terrible message to young people,” Weprin said of the owners’ decision to remove the awning.
Gennaro’s office hosted a meeting with representatives from Lancman’s and Weprin’s offices and the bar owners last week, and the Fresh Meadows councilman said he was pleased with the results.
“Instead of just writing us a reply, they wanted to formally meet with us and indicate they were sorry for the tumult that was caused by the awning,” Gennaro said. “They indicated they very much want to make things right with the community.”
Reach reporter Anna Gustafson by e-mail at agustafson@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4574.
