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After a wildly successful Long Island debut in North Babylon last year, Sonic's area developer has hit a couple of speed bumps on its way to opening additional restaurants here. Even though the franchisee for the drive-in chain with the rollerskating carhops has been turned back in East Meadow and is steering its way through some NIMBYs in Nesconset, it's eyeing more sites and vows to continue its expansion in Nassau and Suffolk counties.
Spencer Hart, a partner in Harrison, N.Y.-based Cinos (Sonic spelled backward), which is the exclusive franchisee for the Island, said he's moving forward with plans to build about a half-dozen Sonic drive-ins on the Island within the next few years, despite the setback in East Meadow.
The Town of Hempstead Board of Appeals rejected variance requests to build a Sonic on the site of a former Rita's Italian Ice in East Meadow Plaza on Hempstead Turnpike in March, citing proximity to bars and parking deficiencies at the property.
"East Meadow is a great community, and I think one day we'll figure out something there or close by," Hart said.
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