BTW, LGBTQ bar in Oceanside, closes doors

BTW, an LGBTQ bar in Oceanside that stands for ‘Born This Way’ has closed its doors due to bad timing and fiscal strain, for now. Owners and allies Gina and Dave Wuestmann of Rockville Centre own the North Village Tavern in RVC, and after hearing customers discussing safe spaces in the bar decided to open BTW in Oceanside. The only caveat being the Covid pandemic, which ultimately lead to too many sunk costs and problems during start-up.

“We got really screwed with Covid, we were building it and then Covid happened, and it really set us back about a year,” said co-owner Gina, “Our timing was just horrendous.”

The couple said they opened their doors Nov. 2020 the day before New York prohibited gatherings at non-essential businesses between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., decimating their chance of revenue during high-activity hours of operation. And although people weren’t coming in, the costs still were, including rent, insurance, electric and other supplies.

Dec. 17 was the official closing date of BTW, but the owners are currently in negotiations with a prospective buyer about purchasing BTW and keeping it an LBGTQ bar. Gina said once they opened BTW, her and her husband became more aware of the needs of the LGBTQ community like the bar. It was also one of the only gay bars on Long Island, with only a handful left. “In the 80s and 90s there used to be a really nice LGBTQ bar scene, but it seemed to go away,” said Gina.

“Some people don’t understand why there has to be a separate base when we’re trying to advocate for inclusivity,” said Gina, “But the fact of the matter is, like everybody, you want to sometime be with your own people who understand what you’re going through…Not everyone is open minded, I think through the years, it’s gotten better, but it still needs a lot of work as far as accepting everybody. And that’s what the bar is about. It’s about everybody just being who they want to be, what they want to be and nobody judging it.” 

Although they won’t be operating BTW, they’ll still be helping the cause through philanthropy by volunteering their time at different organizations. The Wuestmann’s are the founding chapter members of the Long Island Pride Lions Club, which is the fourth LBGTQ Lions Club Chapter in the nation.

And have worked with Project Safety Net, a not-for-profit offering sexual and mental health services, and Pride for Youth run by the Long Island Crisis Center, which has programs and services addressing the needs of the LGBTQ community and their families.   

“We plan on doing some fundraising for the LGBTQ in general. It’s not the last of us, you’ll see us. Hopefully this all works out and we can go in and be customers and hopefully watch a legacy begin,” Gina said.