[Spring 2010]A reader shared this from the other day... the reader ran into the worker on 14th Street and Avenue A...
I spoke to one of the former Stuyvesant Grocery (14th and A) employees. He said he doubted they would ever reopen. The landlord was asking for $1 million upfront and wants to raise their rent from $30K to $80K. I didn't get a chance to ask if he thought the landlord intended to put up some high rise.
As you'll recall, a three-alarm fire wiped out the corner on May 12, 2010... taking with it neighborhood favorites Stuyvesant Grocery and Pete's-a-Pizza.
The space still sits empty behind the plywood. Two for rent signs are hanging on the sidewalk shed. Just what you get to rent is open to interpretation.
Previously on EV Grieve:
Conspiracies: What next for 14th Street and Avenue A?
Renovations in order for Stuyvesant Grocery and Pete's-A-Place?
Highway Robbery. History repeats itself.
ReplyDeleteThere's no incentive for the property owner to preserve the past, and frankly, this is a golden opportunity to capitalize on the situation. I think the party's over on this one.
ReplyDeleteI like getting information from a "reader" who got it from a "worker."
ReplyDelete@ anon 9:24
ReplyDeleteWill change to "resident" and "employee" then.
What a scumbag.
ReplyDeleteThere really are huge rewards for landlords to burn down their buildings, not that I'm insinuating that's the case here, I'm just saying...
ReplyDeleteThe free market does not work!
ReplyDeleteKarma's going to come around and bite that Scumlord in the ass, just wait and see. Those ST Grocery guys were fantastic individuals, and it was a great business.
ReplyDelete"There's no incentive for the property owner to preserve the past, and frankly, this is a golden opportunity to capitalize on the situation. I think the party's over on this one."
ReplyDeleteThis was an active and much needed store on this block. To insinuate that it was a "party" and people will miss it because they want to live in the "past" is asinine.
Aside from the convenience of this store, it kept the area between Avenue A and Avenue C on 14th Street relatively active at night. Now this area is a ghost town which is why there are more car break-ins in the area.
umm ARSON anyone???
ReplyDeletei hope they investigate the sh*t out of this
I like how Anon 8:23 characterizes a fire that destroyed beloved businesses, shook up the surrounding community, and could easily have killed people a "golden opportunity." You sound like a sick freak ... or maybe the landlord here. Potato, potahto.
ReplyDeleteIt was not arson. A worker started the fire by accident.
ReplyDeleteI like getting information from a "reader" who got it from a "worker."?
ReplyDeleteWhere would you like to get the information from? Do you think the Wall Street Journal regularly covers Alphabet City bodegas which have been closed for two years?
I passed the info on to EVG. Obviously that means nothing to anyone. But I assure you I spoke to a former employee of the store, which I once visited regularly. I do not know his name, and I do not know if what he told me was true. He did not present it in such a way as to make anyone look bad. He just seemed disappointed his business would likely not be reopening.
If there is some reason why no progress has been made in rebuilding this property, please enlighten us.