Page 20 THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2017 The Rockaway Times Playland Sells for $2.3M By Katie McFadden Playland has been sold. After about a year since its closing, the building of the former Playland Motel and Restaurant has sold for a whopping $2.3 million. The group of buyers include locals Javed Rambaran, Adam Ecker, and an established local business owner choosing to remain anonymous for now and a Manhattan-based developer, Thomas McClcoskey. It is expected the upstairs rooms will be redesigned and converted into residential units, and the ground floor will be leased to an experienced restaurant operator. CPEX Real Estate made the sale for $2,315,000 total. CPEXâ€™s Mixed-Use Sales Team, consisting of Managing Director Lawrence Sarn and Associate Chase Reiter, and Associate Catherine Vintonik of the CPEX Development and Conversion Sales Team represented the seller, Cayuga Capital, and procured the buyer, a group of local investors. â€œA neighborhood icon after Hurricane Sandy, the former Playland Hotel received a tremendous amount of interest from prospective buyers,â€? Sarn said. â€œUltimately, this was a unique opportunity for local investors to acquire a valuable corner property with a high volume of summertime subway riders and foot traffic. They have already begun to speak with potential food operators and other useful amenities to add to the neighborhood.â€? â€œThis transaction demonstrates the buyerâ€™s confidence in the ongoing development of Rockaway Beach,â€? Reiter added. â€œThe acquisition gives them an opportunity to contribute to the neighborhoodâ€™s growth while revitalizing an asset with a rich history and close ties to the Rockaway community.â€? Located on the corner of Beach 98th Street and Rockaways Beach Boulevard, the 7,200 square-foot building, formerly the Tap and Grill and Boggianoâ€™s before that, was purchased by Cayuga Capital Management principal, Jamie Wiseman in September 2012 for $1.3 million. The restaurant, bar, hotel and backyard space opened in July 2013, after renovations following Hurricane Sandy. In its time there, Playland was a hotspot for visitors and locals alike and became known as a party place. In May 2015, Dan Cipriani stepped in to overhaul the restaurant and bar portion of the building and turned around its late-night party reputation to more of a family-friendly spot. Despite the changes, complaints by neighbors eventually led to the backyard space being shut down, which Cipriani said killed the business and he decided to leave. At the time, rumors were circulating that the upstairs hotel rooms were also being used to house the homeless, which led to a public outcry by local residents, who felt blindsided by the sudden change. Cayuga Capital said the renting to the homeless population was temporary, and eventually the property was left vacant and put up for sale. With the two-story, 7,137square foot property, the new owners plan to convert the 12 second-floor hotel rooms into residential units and lease the three commercial retail spaces on the ground level to restaurateurs and other possible uses. NYCB ELITE RATE 7-MONTH CD Rake in your savings with a GREAT RATE CD 1.25 % APY 1 PLQLPXP WR RSHQ DQG WR HDUQ LQWHUHVW *HW WKLV JUHDW UDWH ZKHQ \RX HQUROO LQ NYCB Elite OLQN \RXU &' WR D QHZ RU H[LVWLQJ NYCB Elite Gold Checking account and maintain $100,000 or more in combined balances2. P\1<&% FRP Â‡ Annual Percentage Yield (APY) above is accurate as of date of publication and is subject to change without notice. The minimum balance to open the promotional CD and to earn the stated APY is $500. The interest rate UHPDLQV Ă€[HG XQWLO PDWXULW\ $ SHQDOW\ PD\ EH LPSRVHG IRU ZLWKGUDZDOV EHIRUH PDWXULW\ )HHV FRXOG UHGXFH HDUQLQJV 7KH 3URPRWLRQDO &' PXVW EH RSHQHG ZLWK QHZ PRQH\ QRW FXUUHQWO\ RQ GHSRVLW ZLWK WKH %DQN 2 7R HDUQ $3< RQ WKH 0RQWK &' HQUROOPHQW LQ 1<&% (OLWH *ROG RU 3ODWLQXP LV UHTXLUHG 1<&% (OLWH *ROG &KHFNLQJ DFFRXQW PLQLPXP WR RSHQ LV 1<&% (OLWH 5HODWLRQVKLS 7HUPV DQG &RQGLWLRQV DSSO\ 1RW DYDLODEOH IRU QRQ SURĂ€W RU EXVLQHVV DFFRXQWV 0DLQWDLQ RU PRUH LQ FRPELQHG EDODQFHV LQ WKH 1<&% (OLWH *ROG UHODWLRQVKLS WR ZDLYH PRQWKO\ IHH 7KRVH QRW HQUROOHG LQ 1<&% (OLWH ZLOO HDUQ $3< on the 7-Month CD. 5DWHV DUH DYDLODEOH IRU DFFRXQWV RSHQHG LQ EUDQFKHV ORFDWHG LQ 1HZ