No opening date in sight for Northport Fish & Lobster Co. as community contributes to GoFundMe campaign
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It’s been five weeks since the Northport Village board authorized legal action against Northport Fish & Lobster Co., leading to its shutdown and resulting in confusion among community members. For people who don’t follow Village meetings closely, the shutdown may have come as a surprise, with some residents noting that they drove up to get their dinner ingredients only to find yellow “Caution” tape across the door. But this local business vs. Village issue has been going on for well over a year, with no end in sight.
Owner Eric Gusew’s fish market has proven to be a staple in the Northport/East Northport community. In years past, the days leading up to Father’s Day, Fourth of July and Christmas Eve were met with lines out the door, and the store’s homemade lobster rolls were a favorite at Cow Harbor Day. When Gusew’s son, Jake, started a GoFundMe campaign for his father’s business on June 28, some community members were quick to support the cause.
“If you've ever been to Northport Fish & Lobster you will notice that the building is an authentic 1927 Sears Kit Home, previously lived in by Ms. Oliva, who married and raised a family in the house, and ran a Texaco gas station out of the building,” wrote Jake. “The building has been functioning for almost 100 years, and now it needs crucial upgrades to conform to Northport Village standards. We are now faced with all sorts of problems of bringing the store up to today’s building standards and codes so that we can help better serve the community for another 35 years.”
He noted that Village Mayor Damon McMullen and his support staff have been “nothing but professional” in trying to help solve the problems. He also indicated that the business lost $18,000 worth of product after the Suffolk County Supreme Court issued a temporary closure, and much more in the loss of sales in the weeks to follow.
Eric Gusew has not been present at his business for over a year due to “a back surgery and the resulting difficulties,” according to Jake. He said his father still has trouble standing for extended periods of time, so it has been impossible for him to manage the business on-site. During Eric’s time away from the market, Northport resident Sam Luby has been the acting manager and has received several complaints from neighbors – both residential and business – regarding his unpermitted work and overall conduct.
On July 3, Eric updated the GoFundMe page with a note to his customers, explaining that he is working on the building permit issues and should have them corrected within the week, which would have allowed the market to reopen on Monday, July 11. When the Journal reached out to Village attorney Stuart Besen about the market opening again, however, he said, “The court order remains.”
Under the court order, no one, including Gusew and Luby, are allowed on the fish market premises. The business has been cited and served with 14 building code and fire marshall violations, including a stop work order. Each citation comes with a fine of $1,000. Jake explained that the money raised by the community will be used to bring the market up to code, pay legal fees resulting from the building violations, and help his father recover his health. To date, the campaign has raised $2,000.
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