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The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Seaport Dog Groomer Shuttered By Sandy Opens Pop-Up Shop on Pier 17

SOUTH STREET SEAPORT — Hurricane Sandy destroyed her Seaport shop, but Amanda Byron Zink is managing to keep her business afloat — and the dogs of lower Manhattan groomed.

Zink’s popular doggy boutique and grooming spa, The Salty Paw, has opened a pop-up store on Pier 17 while the original space at 38 Peck Slip is still undergoing repairs from the damage wrought by 11 feet of corrosive floodwaters last fall.

Zink has converted the expansive spot at the end of the pier — once home to the Sequoia restaurant and bar, which left the space before Sandy — into a shop filled with doggie treats, toys and, of course, her grooming station. She's even selling Bowser Brew — a non-alcoholic "beer" made for pooches that comes in several versions, like the chicken-flavored Cock-a-Doodle Brew — in honor of her new bar home.

The Salty Paw had found a temporary space at the Seaport Animal Hospital in the weeks after the storm, and though Zink said she was extremely grateful for a place to work, the limited basement space was constricting her business.

About three weeks ago, Zink said the pier's owner, the Howard Hughes Corporation — which recently agreed to keep Pier 17 open through Sept. 9 before its massive, multi-million-dollar overhaul — offered her the space for the summer at a “very fair” rent.

“It’s an unbelievable opportunity for us to get back on our feet while we await to rebuild our flagship store,” Zink said. “It’s been an ongoing struggle to recover from the superstorm, both emotionally and financially… this is our first step towards that goal.”

Other business owners whose Seaport shops remain shuttered are currently in talks with Howard Hughes to possibly take up other empty space on Pier 17 for the summer, local owners said.

Zink's store is now open every day, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., except for Wednesdays.

"This is really breathing new life into our business and, hopefully, into the neighborhood," Zink added. "We're actually looking forward to the summer now."