06/13/2025
A post that felt like we were never going to be able to officially release: The lawsuit between the East Brooklyn Fire Department, Brooklyn Fire District, and The Town of Brooklyn, The Ice Box & Sütő et al is finally settled.
The Ice Box & Sütő HAVE PREVAILED
2,240 days have passed since we experienced the first incident of aggression from the East Brooklyn Fire Department/District.
We are using the word prevail here because there is no winning in a case like this. The turmoil we have endured during these long days is something anyone outside of our family will ever fully understand. The torture of having to tell our hard-working, loyal employees that we couldn’t keep up the fight any longer continues to keep us up, nightly. Seeing the sad faces of our youngest customers who ask us, “when are you reopening the shop so I can invent a new flavor with my class?”
The look on our own boys faces when we had to leave baseball games, step out of family dinners to talk to lawyers, marshals coming to serve us, repeatedly, while the kids play in the yard. The emotional toll of the stigma that we were in some way obstructing emergency services in this town. The social stigma has caused us to lose so many longtime connections within a community we cherish so much. The weight of feeling like we failed everyone who poured pieces of themselves in the little ice cream shop that could… and on and on an on…
Rather than rehash all the details of past six years we will remain focused on the fact that we prevailed in BOTH securing our property rights and assuring those rights for all parties who share this right of way now, and at any point in the future.
We have attached a link to the official stipulated judgment which was ordered by the court today. In summary though these are the property assurances we fought so hard to regain all these years:
· Removal of the improper fire lane signs in the
shared right of way
· Removal of the EBFD parking spaces located
within the right of way
· Removal of the forced striping from our
parking space in front of Sütő
· Issuance of a quit claim deed transferring any
rights the EBFD et al may have to the
westernmost portion of that front parking
space to us
· In no event shall any additional striping,
structures, or signage be placed on or within
consent of JMN or its successor-in-title to 17
So. Main Street.
So, the million dollar question, what’s next?
WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE PROPERTY: With all the assurances secured and protected for the future we are re-listing the property for sale with hopes for new owners to put their own stamp on the property and the community. We have been in contacted by interested corporations, but we hold out hope that someone right will come along who is interested in keeping this place a local community hub! 🏢🏠
WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE BUSINESSES: Time will tell. Because of all the exorbitant delays from the EBFD and Town of Brooklyn we are very far behind to what we had hoped as far as reopening the businesses. Now that things are officially official, we are going to get a refreshed jump on getting back to work cultivating community relationships, and tantalizing taste buds ASAP! 🍨🌮
WHAT’S NEXT FOR OUR FAMILY: Who the heck knows… LOL. We have obviously been through a lot over the past few years. During our time away from the business we have experienced the loss of immediate family members while we also continue to manage the health of others. All along with raising our boys who play SO much baseball... We’ve been kept very busy with life. Although we have been very vocal about our desire to move our family out of town but given family commitments, and ties to the community (BPS/BLL) we might be sticking it out here in Brooklyn a little longer. We truly don’t know. 👨👨👧👧🤷🏻♀️
A continued thank you to all our family, friends, customers, etc. who have bent over backwards to support us through the past six years. We will never be able to fully express what that has meant to us. Please know we intend to do SO much good in the future to even out the good karma we have been gifted by you all!
Stay tuned for The Ice Box & Sütő (and the Nemeths) second act! ✌️ ❤️ 🍨
Matt, Jenn, Arlo & Wynton Nemeth and The Ice Box & Sütő family
📸 Our family 2,240 days ago, our family now, Arlo’s yearbook entry listing his wish for 2025. ❤️
https://civilinquiry.jud.ct.gov/DocumentInquiry/DocumentInquiry.aspx?DocumentNo=30207555
