Brooklyn Empanada Eatery Foiled By Pipeline Standoff: Report

BUSHWICK, BROOKLYN — A popular empanada eatery that hoped to open a Bushwick branch is caught up in a stand-off between New York and National Grid, which is refusing to issue new gas hook-ups until the state approves a possibly water-contaminating pipeline, according to reports.

Popular Lefferts Gardens restaurant Empanada City may be forced to postpone opening a Starr Street outpost as a battle rages over the proposed expansion to the Transco pipeline, which the state's Department of Environmental Conservation rejected in May, Bedford + Bowery reports.

"They’re literally holding New Yorkers hostage over this pipeline,” co-owner Briant Almonte told Bedford + Bowery. “Our concern is that we’re going to be ready to open and that we’ll have no gas.”

The state agency denied the proposed Northeast Supply Enhancement Project — which would bring a natural gas pipeline into the Rockaways — because it would bring copper and mercury into New York Bay and because about 45,000 had written to object, according to their official denial.

National Grid responded to the DEC's rejection of their proposal by announcing they would approve no new gas applications for restaurants and buildings until the pipeline was approved, Reuters reported.

“The infrastructure serving the region has reached full capacity,” National Grid representative Karen Young told Bedford + Bowery. “To add additional service would pose a risk to the integrity of our system and compromise natural gas use for our existing firm customers.”

The embargo means Empanada City's application on June 5 was put on indefinite hold and owners are growing increasingly worried about the $100,000 loan they took out to launch at 321 Starr St. in September.

"It’s not like Verizon, AT&T and Sprint where if I’m not happy with Verizon, I just call up AT&T and get service from them," said Almonte. "National Grid is the only service provider."

Read the full report here.