Community Corner

Website Allows Sandy-Battered Businesses to Keep Patrons Updated

LongBeachIsBack.com was created to let people know what stores have reopened or remain closed.


Noah Malewicz noticed the many Facebook pages and volunteer organizations that were devoted to recovery efforts in Long Beach after Hurricane Sandy and he wanted to do his part.

The owner of OuttaSite Web Design, a company that helps many small businesses design websites, logos and other marketing materials, Malewicz created the non-profit website LongBeachIsBack.com, which aims to keep his community informed of the status of businesses in the storm-battered city.

“I was inspired to do something as well,” said Malewicz, who launched the site March 1 after he gutted and rebuilt his flooded West End home. “Since I'm not a very skilled contractor, I thought of ways that I could help. I make websites for a living, so why not help out that way?”

Malewicz had many conversations with neighbors about the status of certain businesses. C-Town, the West End’s only supermarket, was a store of particular note. He’d heard conflicting rumors about whether it was going to remain closed or reopen. It made him wish for a place where people might get definitive answers. The idea for his website was born.

“Local businesses that are hurting after Sandy need all of the customers they can get,” he said. “I have seen the stores with ‘We are open’ signs in their windows. Why not get their signs on the web where more eyes can see them?”

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Then came the difficult part: finding out about the actual statuses of businesses beyond mere hearsay. To start, he’s been gathering information the old fashioned way: on foot. He started walking up and down West Beech Street, taking notes on what he saw.

A week into the project, most businesses listed on his site are located in the West End, but he would like to include stores and restaurants from other parts of town. The icons accompanying each business listed on his site mimic actual signs that read “Open for Business,” “Sorry, We’re Closed” and “Soon to Open.” Of the businesses whose statuses remain in doubt, he puts question marks next to their listings.

The icon sign for Jake’s Wayback Burger on West Beech Street, for example, reads “Sorry, We’re Closed,” but Caffe Laguna restaurant’s listing shows a question mark.

“When I went to Caffe Laguna and I look inside, it’s all ripped out but it doesn’t look like there’s anyone inside doing construction,” Malewicz said. “I’m assuming they’re coming back, but I’m not sure.”

The only circumstance that alleviates his doubts are the stores that post window signs that state or suggest that they will return. One such store is Rose & Eye, the women's boutique on West Beech, which has a sign posted in the window that reads: "Will Reopen Spring 2013." Those stores get a “Soon to Open” icon on the site.

Malewicz hopes to break the clouds of uncertainty by getting business owners to discover the site, claim a listing, and use it as a way to shine a light on their status. This is the main purpose of the site, he said.  

“Mainly I would love it to be a discussion tool, where the business can actually communicate with the customers and the customers with the business,” he said. “ … I hope that they’ll do it, because it’s for them. It’s free promotion for them to get the word out.”

Of course, with hundreds of business to keep track of and his own business to run, Malewicz can only do so much on his own. On his site he asks businesses to claim their listings and readers to keep him updated on store openings as well. He created a Long Beach Is Back Facebook page, and hopes to promote it elsewhere on the Internet and by simple word of mouth, with the hope that information will reach business owners who will start signing up and using it to provide information.

“It's a free chance for them to promote their business, so I hope they take advantage of the opportunity,” he said. “All they have to do is add their business to the directory. Hopefully, the word will spread. Readers can even review businesses. Why not throw a little love to your favorite business? They need all the help they can get right now.”





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