LI Urban Air Among Indoor Entertainment Businesses Suing Cuomo

LAKE GROVE, NY — Urban Air Lake Grove joined dozens of other family entertainment centers across New York in launching a lawsuit against Gov. Andrew Cuomo. The lawsuit was filed on Feb. 4 by James G. Mermigis, the plaintiffs' attorney.

The lawsuit argues Cuomo has been inconsistent in the way he allowed certain indoor businesses to reopen after the March 2020 shutdown but has forced others to remain closed. The suit seeks immediate relief and the allowance of indoor entertainment centers to reopen under the same coronavirus guidelines other businesses are facing.

"Governor Cuomo continues to make random and arbitrary decisions as to which businesses can open, none of which are based on science or data," Mermigis said via a news release. "Governor Cuomo and his team tasked with reopening our economy have ignored these family businesses, which have provided extensive evidence of how they can operate safely. The Governor is destroying these family businesses, some of which may never recover."

Urban Air Lake Grove, currently the only location on Long Island, opened in November 2019 at 3147 Middle Country Road. The 40,000-square-foot center employed more than 150 full-time and part-time team members and features trampolines, an obstacle course, bumper cars, a slam dunk trampoline station, cafe and more.

Following the pandemic-imposed shutdown, Urban Air Lake Grove reopened in Nov. 2020 for five weeks. The park operated at 25 percent capacity, enforced temperature checks, face coverings and hourly cleanings of all surfaces. However, it was ordered closed again by the Suffolk County Department of Labor, Licensing, and Consumer Affairs despite there being no complaints filed for any violations, according to Urban Air.

"It was a total surprise and the reason for the closure has still not been explained to Urban Air," the company stated.

Not a single case of COVID-19 was traced back to the park, said David Wolmetz, owner of Urban Air Lake Grove.

"We have created an extensive plan to operate safely and provided that several times to the State, but they’re ignoring us," Wolmetz said.

Other plaintiffs include indoor adventure parks, trampoline parks, arcades, laser tag centers and other indoor family amusements. The businesses claimed the ongoing restrictions imposed on businesses during the COVID-19 outbreak are unfair as compared to gyms, casinos, bowling alleys, indoor recreation venues and many other indoor businesses that have reopened. The lack of guidance, businesses said, has caused immense harm by being forced to close indefinitely.

The lawsuit also charges that the shutdown ordered in March 2020 was not based on data or analysis of the businesses' ability to enforce COVID-19 protocols endorsed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Cuomo on Jan. 11 tweeted, "We simply cannot stay closed until the vaccine hits the critical mass. The cost is too high. We will have nothing left to open. We must reopen the economy, but we must do it smartly and safely."

Mermigis pointed to the tweet and countered that his plaintiffs have been ready to open "smartly and safely" for several months and have suffered "colossal harm" over the past 11 months.

"Plaintiffs have moved 'heaven and earth' to ensure that their indoor public amusement centers are as safe or safer than all businesses that have been open or allowed to open," the lawsuit reads.

Cuomo on Jan. 25, at his daily news conference, stated that the numbers of coronavirus positivity and COVID-19 hospitalizations were starting to decrease, which means adjustments on economic activity could be made, the lawsuit states.

"Despite all the positive numbers in the State of New York as articulated by Governor Cuomo, Plaintiffs' businesses and livelihood remain shut down," the suit reads.

Wolmetz said it shouldn't take a lawsuit to capture the attention of those whose duties are to get the New York economy moving again.

"We can serve our guests as safely if not more safely than similar types of businesses that have successfully reopened under published guidance," Wolmetz said. “Over the last 11 months, we have tried to engage NYS with publishing guidance for [family entertainment centers] to reopen safely. Even in July, when New York State was at a sub-1 percent transmission rate, we were mandated to be closed with no published guidance to reopen. The time is now for Governor Cuomo to make things right and allow [family entertainment centers] to operate."

Cuomo was sued in July by gym owners in what was a class-action lawsuit. Gyms have since been able to reopen. Mermigis helped file the gym owners' lawsuit, as well.