This summer's mostly nice weather helped some Long Island businesses have their best season in years.

For the first time since Superstorm Sandy, Mark Evangelista opened his doors for business this summer. His Long Beach restaurant, Overlook at the Beach, was destroyed during the storm and it took years to rebuild.

Evangelista says his livelihood was on the line this summer because a bad season could have put him out of business. This year, he says the summer brought success.

"Thank goodness we had great weather. July and August really hit it out of the ballpark," he says.

Other businesses around Long Island welcomed the beach crowds, including marina owner Chris Badenhop, of Merrick, who says it was also a winning season for businesses on the water. He says people are starting to ditch their fears that a big storm is coming and are beginning to buy boats again.

"I think a lot of people are sort of putting Sandy to bed," Badenhop says.