Questions and contention continue regarding the building of a new upscale supermarket in the location of the former Pergament on Forest Avenue spanning up to, but not including, the site of the now empty Stop and Shop. Last week, a temporary restraining order (TRO) was served on the developer of the new supermarket, Cove Associates, by attorneys for the current Stop and Shop which is now operating out of the former Farmers Bazaar location. At press time, however, this newspaper learned that the plaintiffs in the case, represented by William Bonesso of Forchelli et al law firm, lost their bid for a restraining order, and that on Tuesday morning, the Nassau County Supreme Court lifted the TRO against Cove Associates and dismissed the application for a preliminary injunction. In December, the Glen Cove Planning Board had granted approval for development of the project. On the heels of this approval, Four T2 Associates (who own the property where the now empty Stop and Shop is located) and the Stop and Shop Company filed an Article 78 proceeding with the Nassau County Supreme Court in Mineola. An Article 78 seeks to have local government decisions overturned. The Article 78 decision is still pending.

The overturning of the TRO led the way for the builders of the proposed supermarket to continue the refurbishment and development of the site on Forest Avenue pending further action on the Article 78 proceedings. According to Anthony J. Maurino, Glen Cove Building Administration/Code Enforcement, in the time between now and next Tuesday, when the Article 78 proceedings will be considered in court, Cove Associates can go on with their construction.

Jay Adoni of Cove Associates was very, very happy with the decision of the court. While he believed the TRO was wrong, when served, he was forced by law to stop all work on the site, thereby disappointing a large number of local workers by putting them out of work. Hopefully, he says, they will be able to get back to work immediately, thereby ending the difficult "on again, off again" situation. He expressed relief that the judge understood the case and vacated the order.

Prior to Tuesday's decision by the Supreme Court, Nick Sordi, attorney for Jay Adoni and Cove Associates had told this newspaper that he believed the owners of Stop and Shop were continuing to do "the same thing they have been doing all along, attempting to prevent another supermarket, or competition, from opening in Glen Cove, and that they would stop at nothing, including possibly bankrupting my client, to succeed." He was elated that the judge "saw we were correct and that the people who brought motion, although they claimed to be irreparably damaged by this work, could not show that damage." The location in question is zoned for B-3 use, which would permit a supermarket "as of right." While particulars of the Article 78 still have to be decided, Mr. Sordi added, "we will all go on about our business confident we will be successful in the long run."

Also prior to Tuesday's decision, Mr. Bonesso had explained that his client had filed for a TRO because at that time, although an "Article 78 decision is pending, the ongoing construction interferes with any decision that might be made in the case, so we felt that we needed to ask for a stay." Speaking with this newspaper after the TRO was lifted, he commented that "Obviously, we felt it should have remained in effect; nevertheless the builder has recognized that construction is at his own risk and we hope that the court will overturn the planning board's approval as requested in the Article 78."

As to the Article 78 proceedings, Kathleen Deegan Dickson, a city attorney, stated, "I believe the city planning board acted reasonably and had a rational basis for its decisions and I believe those decisions will be upheld."