Sweetheart deal saves Tavern on the Green $1M a year

The city’s sweetheart lease deal with Tavern on the Green will save the owners of the Central Park restaurant about $1 million this year, The Post has learned.

The Parks Department quietly agreed in July 2013 to defer Tavern’s fees — rent that is based on a percentage of sales — because the massive cost of renovating the eatery cost its new owners “significantly more than anticipated,” or $15 million, a parks spokesperson said in an email.

Jim Caiola and David Salama, who reopened Tavern a year ago, will not pay fees until 2019 and will only start to pay off the first five years after 2024.

They have a 20-year lease.

“Five years seems uncharacteristically long, but then this is an unusual investment,” said restaurant consultant Clark Wolf.

This arrangement is on top of another sweetheart deal the city orchestrated on behalf of the operators: a two-year reprieve from paying employees union wages.

Tavern’s $1 million in savings is based on an estimated $17.5 million in annual revenues.