For once, rumors of the Frying Pan's demise aren't greatly exaggerated: The venue-cafe's lease on Pier 63 has expired along with Basketball City's. (The city plans to build a new section of Hudson River Park where the railroad barge anchoring the Pan now floats.) Angela Krevy, wife of Steve, the owner, says not to worry: Pending recently commenced negotiations, the John J. Harvey fireboat, the Frying Pan, the kayak storage shed, and the recently opened Cafe du Soleil will tie up at Pier 66A, an old float bridge, and the Pan will serve food at another newly installed section of the park as early as next spring. Question is, will it remain a center of summertime decadence, given the crackdown on West Chelsea nightlife and the fact that it will have to apply for a new liquor license? If nothing else, the operating hours will be abbreviated: The park closes at 1 a.m. "A lot of people want it to open up as the same type of facility," Krevy says. "We're hoping that will happen." —Daniel Maurer