Community Corner

Viral Videos Of Astoria Partiers Trigger Enforcement Blitz

The mayor is pledging to crack down on the crowded, late-night parties that have been filling Steinway Street.

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Late-night partiers crowding Steinway Street on Thursday.
Late-night partiers crowding Steinway Street on Thursday. (Patch Contributor)

ASTORIA, QUEENS — Mayor Bill de Blasio pledged to crack down on restaurants and bars along Steinway Street after scenes of late-night, maskless partiers crowding the Astoria thoroughfare went viral on social media.

The mayor sent the NYPD and the New York City Sheriff's Office, which is in charge of civil enforcement across the five boroughs, to patrol Steinway Street this weekend and ticket people and businesses flouting rules meant to prevent COVID-19's spread and keep the roadway clear.

“If they do not cooperate in our efforts to contain the coronavirus, they will be shut down," de Blasio said during a Monday news briefing. "When we agreed to let this part of our life come back, it was not meant to be business as usual."

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Officers handed out face coverings, ticketed double-parked drivers and worked to disperse crowds Saturday night after scenes of the raucous parties caught City Hall's attention.

At least one business has been sanctioned, and New York State Liquor Authority spokesperson William Crowley has said the agency is aware of the issues going on in Queens. Crowley did not immediately respond to an email Monday requesting comment.

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BRIK Astoria, at 32-16 Steinway St., was suspended from the city's outdoor dining program for the week for failing to comply with social distancing rules, though the owner insisted his business did nothing wrong.

"We have no control over what happens outside of our restaurant & in public streets," BRIK wrote in an Instagram post.

City Council Member Costa Constantinides is also lobbying the State Liquor Authority to take away the liquor license of Melody Cafe & Restaurant, at 25-95 Steinway St., citing large crowds that aren't social distancing as well as a history of "violent incidents amongst patrons," according to a letter obtained by Patch.

The city's enforcement blitz followed a series of viral videos showing throngs of people not wearing masks flocking to Steinway Street to drink and smoke hookah, prompting some to compare it to the party scene in Miami, Florida, using the nickname "stiami."

One video shows partiers getting mixed drinks from the back of a double-parked car. Another shows people dancing on top of an ice cream truck as loud music plays.

Constantinides, who represents Astoria in the City Council, and Astoria residents have complained for weeks of loud partying and businesses flouting New York's pandemic-era rules — to no avail.

If the city had intervened earlier, some posited, the parties may not have escalated to the level seen in the viral videos from last week and this past weekend.

In a withering, five-paragraph statement Saturday, Constantinides lambasted the city for failing until now to crack down on Astoria partiers and the businesses hosting them.

"For the last week, we have seen a select few bars think they can flaunt every rule in the book while the City agencies tasked with enforcing them sit idly by," Constantinides said. "Our streets have descended into pure mayhem, the threat of COVID-19 spreading is dangerously high, and Astoria residents are rightfully furious at the relentless noise that goes into the early hours of the morning."

The partying, which is not confined to Steinway Street, put Astoria among the New York City neighborhoods with the most complaints of social distancing violations last month.

Asked why the city has only now stepped in, de Blasio said his administration was trying to avoid using enforcement measures that could cripple already-struggling businesses, instead opting to remind owners of the rules and issue warnings.

“It wasn’t our preference given everything it would mean to the people it would involve," de Blasio said.

The mayor also claimed that the late-night parties were a new, "unrecognized" problem — even though Constantinides' spokesperson, Terence Cullen, told Patch that their office had raised the issue with City Hall for several weeks.

"A slew of COVID-19 regulations and measures were set up, only for the multi-agency task force created to enforce them remain silent," Constantinides said.

The recent scenes of Astoria's rowdy nighttime parties prompted a blunt response Monday from Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who instituted a "three strikes" rule last week against bars and restaurants found violating social guidelines: Knock it off.

"If it happens," Cuomo said, "we're going to have to roll back the opening plan."

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