Love to Dance, a new dance studio for children, will be opening its doors in Mineola this summer.
The Mineola Village Board approved a special-use permit Wednesday for Nicole Cettina of Floral Park to open the studio.
Cettina said she has been dancing for 30 years and teaching for 13. She currently teaches dance lessons at the East Williston Rec Center and at a South Shore studio.
“I’d love to open a dance studio in your town. I’ve been dancing my whole life,” she said. “I’m very well-versed in the business, and I think this community would be a nice fit.”
Cettina said her studio will feature jazz, tap, hip-hop and ballet dance lessons, with classes ranging from eight to no more than 10 children at a time. She also plans to eventually offer adult classes, she said.
Lesson times will range from 3 to 9 p.m. on weekdays, with shorter hours on Saturdays, Cettina said.
Christopher Hampton, a Mineola resident, said he was concerned with a potential increase in traffic in the area.
The location at 276 Jericho Turnpike is between Marcellus Road and Wellington Road, which Hampton said is already used to cut between Hillside and Jericho.
“I’m especially concerned about the parking,” he said. “I have concerns about the congestion on Jericho Turnpike. As much as she says there won’t be double parking, there may be double parking, and we already know how congested Jericho can get.”
Trustee Paul Pereira echoed Hampton’s concerns, offering the suggestion that Cettina use the building’s back alley to allow parents to pick up and drop off children away from the busy Jericho Turnpike and help cut down on possible double parking.
Cettina said she will establish clear parking and drop-off regulations utilizing this back alley and entrance with her patrons, as well as on her website and social media pages, to minimize any potential increase in traffic or congestion.
Village of Mineola Mayor Scott Strauss said he understands Hampton’s concerns as the board is familiar with the situation on Marcellus and Wellington roads, and agreed that double parking on Jericho could be an issue.
“The jumping in and jumping out of kids on Jericho Turnpike — they might say, ‘Oh, I’m only here for a few seconds’ but a few seconds turns into a few minutes, and that causes the congestion,” he said. “But all in all, I think that it beats an abandoned store.”
Strauss said the board was in support of the idea, and wished Cettina the best of luck.
“Thank you for selecting Mineola, there’s many other communities you could have, and you’ve found a good place to open a business in,” he said.
Cettina said Love to Dance is set to open in the summer, and she will be launching a website as well as social media pages in the near future.
