This storefront remains vacant 15 months after Ink on A closed

Photos by Stacie Joy 

There has been some activity inside 66 Avenue A between Fourth Street and Fifth Street ... as the space appears to be getting prepped for leasing action...

In the past year or so, the interior has been a staging area for the gut renovations of the block-long building (58-72 Avenue A), which now goes as Untitled (and is free of the previous market-rate tenants).

This storefront — along with the one previously the lottery shop next to the liquor store — is for lease. Per the listing (PDF here): "Situated in a vibrant neighborhood, this location is located in line with other retail and surrounded by major retailers such as Starbucks, Blink Fitness, SoulCycle, and Crunch Fitness." 

(Interesting businesses to namecheck. "Surrounded by"? Soul Cycle is on Fourth and Lafayette, one block west of the Crunch on the Bowery.)

Ink closed here in July 2023 after 30-plus years in business. Owner Ben "Benny" Dahud had been in a legal tussle (some of this was his own fault, he admitted) with the private equity firm that bought the building in the fall of 2022 for $64 million. 

In the end, Benny decided to retire and close the newsstand. This post has more background about what transpired. 

Anyway, we miss Ink and Benny. We hope he is enjoying his time away from behind the counter (seen below in June 2023).

Stuyvesant Street storefronts return to view

Photo by Steven 

On Tuesday, workers removed the sidewalk bridge and remaining construction netting along 29 Third Ave. (home of the Bean) and the empty storefronts at 8-14 Stuyvesant St.

Asbestos abatement notices arrived back in April at the storefronts. Work permits at the DOB showed permits for "retail store white box interior renovation."

We're curious if for-lease signs are next.

As previously reported, Village Yokocho, Angel's Share and Panya closed in these spaces in April 2022. Another restaurant, Sharaku, in the corner space at 14 Stuyvesant St., shuttered earlier in the pandemic. (Sunrise Mart in a separate building next door on the second floor also shut down.)

Cooper Union, which leased the buildings from their owners and had subleased them to the Yoshida Restaurant Group for more than 25 years, said it was the tenants' decision to move on. (This post has more background. Yoshida had not paid rent since 2020.)

There haven't been any public statements on what the landlord, believed to be 29 Third Ave Corporation c/o Casabella Holdings, LLC, has in store for the spaces. A Cooper Union rep told us previously that no new building was planned on this site. Based on the reveal this week, it looks as if the storefronts were just receiving an interior-exterior renovation.

By the way, Angel's Share reopened in the West Village in June. 

Time passages: Check out the interior of the long-empty Mom's Liquor Store on Avenue B

Photos by Stacie Joy

Last month, we had the scoop about the new owner of 6 Avenue B, the long empty/abandoned building on the NW corner of Houston. The owner is an LLC linked to Penn Capital South, whose portfolio includes multiple EV properties. 

A gut renovation is in the works — as is asbestos abatement. There has been some mystery and intrigue about the whole building, especially the storefront that housed the liquor store — aka Mom's. 

The retail space has been closed since the owner passed away in the fall of 2009 at age 89. (Chico created the tribute to her on the gate in February 2010.)

How have nearly 14 years of vacancy treated the space? What does the interior event look like these days?

EVG contributor Stacie Joy found out the other day... with a look inside Mom's, a frozen-in-time space where bottles of Riunite still go for $5.25. The bullet-proof register area remains intact as well.

Come, let's look inside...

Also discovered... this EVG post about the store's owner from 2010:

I enjoy watching her reaction to some fancypants asking her if they have any, say, really buttery California chardonnays whose grapes were harvested on hillsides composed of Kimmeridgian marl, limestone and chalk. Her reaction is usually either, "WHAT?" or "WHY WOULD WE HAVE THAT."

Previously on EVG:

• Because you've always wanted to know what the inside of the long-empty 6 Avenue B looks like

• Let's take another look at the eerie remains of the long-abandoned 6 Avenue B 

The state of this Stuyvesant Street retail space

We've talked with several readers/residents dismayed by the current state of 8-14 Stuyvesant St. ... the once-vibrant corridor with four popular businesses here between Third Avenue and Ninth Street. 

Today (photos from Tuesday), the storefronts sit empty and continue to attract graffiti and wheatpaste ads (and abandoned chairs!) ...

As previously reported, Village Yokocho, Angel's Share and Panya closed in these spaces in April. Another restaurant, Sharaku in the corner space at 14 Stuyvesant St., shuttered earlier in the pandemic. (Sunrise Mart in a separate building next door on the second floor also shut down.)

Cooper Union, which leases the buildings from their owners and had subleased them to the Yoshida Restaurant Group for more than 25 years, said it was the tenants' decision to move on. (This post has more background. Yoshida had not paid rent since 2020.)

No word on what the landlord, believed to be 29 Third Ave Corporation c/o Casabella Holdings, LLC, has in store for the spaces. We haven't spotted any retail listings for the address. (A Cooper Union rep told us previously that there isn't a new building planned on this site.)

So expect this strip to remain in this state for the foreseeable future. 

3 for-rent signs along a once popular stretch of 7th Street

A rather sad state here on Seventh Street just east of First Avenue ... where for rent signs (now all via the same broker) hang in three consecutive storefronts that previously housed bustling quick-serve restaurants.

Most recently, Caracas Arepa Bar closed in early November at 91 E. Seventh St. The original location at at 93 1/2 E. Seventh St. suffered extensive fire damage in September 2016, and the owners were never able to reopen in the space, which has remained vacant. 

In the middle, the first outpost for Luke's Lobster's closed in October 2019.

Both Caracas Arepa Bar and Luke's carry on at other locations. These small spaces on Seventh Street seem ideal for other new businesses just starting out. 

As Luke's founders Luke Holden and Ben Conniff wrote in October 2019: "It's time for 93 E. 7th Street to help launch someone else's dream, and we can't wait to visit and support it."

Formerly interesting new business closes on 1st Avenue and 14th Street

From the EVG tipline: The AT&T store on the southwest corner of First Avenue and 14th Street has closed (confirmed by the location's website). Workers have emptied out the space ...



The AT&T outpost opened last November ... taking over the retail spot from a Vitamin Shoppe that shuttered in November 2018.

Previously on EV Grieve:
• Signage for interesting new business arrives on 1st Avenue and 14th Street

Rumors: A new tenant for the long-empty bank branch on Avenue A and 4th Street

After sitting vacant for the past two-plus years, a tipster tells us that there's a new tenant for the former Santander branch on the southwest corner of Avenue A and Fourth Street.

Brown paper now covers the windows of the storefront. Santander pulled out at the end of April 2018.

Rumors of the new lease brings an end to ChaShaMa's tenure here. The nonprofit partners with property owners to transform unused real estate into spaces for pop-up galleries.

The new lease also brought a premature end to Darrell Thorne's current show. The Brooklyn-based designer and performance artist (and onetime East Village resident) was midway through an interactive exhibit titled "Under Glass and in Color" here. It was expected to be up through July 12, but went dark at the end of June.


[Photo of Thorne by Stacie Joy]

Previously on EV Grieve:
• Designer Darrell Thorne is 'Under Glass and In Color' on Avenue A

• ChaShaMa making a bank statement at former Santander branch on Avenue A

Tuesday's parting shot

Earlier today on Avenue A and Sixth Street.

And on this Cinco de Mayo, a reminder that this corner space has sat vacant since Benny's Burritos closed here in November 2014...

Discarded flower power

You may have noticed the flowers outside the former Bar Virage on the northeast corner (we were just talking about this space) of Second Avenue and Seventh Street this morning...



This is an ongoing project via @concretegardennyc ... a collaboration between @gumshoeart and @cohreenah, who rescue discarded flowers from the trash and place them on vacant storefronts to help beautify the space ... they've previously done this on the southwest corner of the Bowery and East Houston ... and the former New York Central Art Supply on Third Avenue near 11th Street...

View this post on Instagram

Where flowers bloom, so does hope ✨

A post shared by @GUMSHOEART & @COHREENAH (@concretegardennyc) on Oct 21, 2019 at 9:39pm PDT

Looking at two empty corner storefronts along 7th Street

Here's a look at two long-vacant corner storefronts along Seventh Street ... starting with the northeast corner at First Avenue...



118 First Ave. has been vacant since Golden Food Market closed here in the summer of 2017 after 35 years in business. Before their lease wasn't renewed, an LLC with a West 11th Street address bought the building in the spring of 2017 for $5.8 million, per public records.

A tapas-wine bar was in the works for the space in April 2018, but those plans never materialized.

---

... and here's the northeast corner at Second Avenue...



118 Second Ave. has been tenant-free since Bar Virage shut down in December 2018. Ravi DeRossi had designs on a vegan-diner concept here, but CB3 denied him a full liquor license even though Bar Virage had that same license. So he decided to look elsewhere.

Both prime corner spots remain on the rental market.

Report: New legislation aims to track vacant storefronts, monitor health of small businesses

[For rent along 2nd Avenue]

In case you missed this news from last week... City Council passed legislation (totaling five bills) — the first of its kind in the country — that will require landlords to register storefronts with the city. This database will offer a snapshot of retail spaces in the five boroughs and their vacancy status.

As Bloomberg put it:

The effort, aimed at creating a more comprehensive data set to monitor the health of the city’s small businesses, seeks to replace the existing patchwork of available information, which doesn’t paint a complete picture of the state of the market.

The “Storefront Tracker” bill, introduced by Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer, City Council member Helen Rosenthal and City Council Speaker Corey Johnson, requires the Department of Finance to gather data on storefronts that will be bundled into an online resource to better understand the woes of the small-business sector.

Some details via amNY's report:

At the start of each year, building owners with storefront and second-floor commercial spaces, as well as commercial spaces in residential buildings, will be required to register with the city Department of Finance as part of their annual income and expense filings. The size, location, occupancy status, monthly rent, lease status and owner contact information will be required for each space.

Owners who fail to register or who provide inaccurate data will face fines. They will also be required to update the database if the occupancy status or ownership of the building changes within the first six months of the year.

The public will be able to see a commercial building’s occupancy status via the online Storefront Tracker database. More detailed data, such as the median time vacant spaces have remained empty, will be made available online via the census tract or council district.

Small-business advocates were generally supportive of the Storefront Tracker, calling it a useful tool.

“But it is perplexing why a bill counting vacant storefronts was fast-tracked and passed in just four short months,” Kirsten Theodos, co-founder of TakeBackNYC, told The Villager, “while the Small Business Jobs Survival Act, a bill that would actually stop the closings by addressing the unfair lease-renewal process, had a hearing eight months ago and since then there has been zero movement toward a vote.”

Said Andrew Berman, executive director of Village Preservation: "[I]t is not by itself nearly sufficient to address the challenges facing small store owners in New York City right now."

The Association for Neighborhood & Housing Development had a more celebratory take on the legislation.

"These wins come at a time when neighborhoods across the five boroughs have seen steep upticks in vacant commercial space. Landlords may be prompted to warehouse their storefronts in anticipation of rising rents or with the intent of holding out for the highest bidding tenant."

According to a count done by the East Village Community Coalition last summer and fall, there are over 200 vacant storefronts in the East Village.

As we've seen in the East Village, storefronts can sit empty for up to five years. For instance, two spaces in the retail base of NYU's Alumni Hall on Third Avenue at Ninth Street were vacant from the summer of 2014 until H-Mart opened early last month.

H/T MJB!

Previously on EV Grieve:
Raising awareness of the vacant storefronts in the East Village

Capital One leaves the East Village

Capital One has closed its remaining two bank branches in the East Village. Wednesday was the last call for the outpost on 10th Street and Second Avenue (above) and Avenue C at Third Street (below).



Your CO banking business can now be done at the flagship outpost on Union Square. Or maybe the CO branch on Grand and the Bowery.

The Capital One on the southeast corner of Third Avenue and 14th Street closed in July 2016, and that prime spot is still on the rental market.

As noted in previous bank-branch-closure posts, this continues the trend where banks are pulling back from storefront services. Last June, The Wall Street Journal reported that banks across the United States have closed nearly 9,000 branches this decade "as more customers rely on digital tools to complete routine banking transactions."

Previously on EV Grieve:
What's in your empty storefront? Capital One is closing both of its East Village branches

Survey: There's a lower rate of retail vacancies in landmarked areas of the East Village

[Click to go big]

The percentage of retail vacancies in landmarked areas of the East Village were less than half the rate in non-landmarked areas – 7% vs. 15%, according to a survey released late last week by Village Preservation (GVSHP).

Here's more from the survey:

This was consistent throughout the neighborhood – non-landmarked streets had consistently higher retail vacancy rates than landmarked ones, sometimes as high as 31%. By contrast, the East Village’s three landmarked districts encompassing about 400 buildings had 242 retail spaces with 17 vacancies and a fairly consistent retail vacancy rate of about 7%. The East Village overall has about 2,200 buildings with 1649 retail spaces and 250 vacancies, or a 15% retail vacancy rate.

The findings of this new apples-to-apples survey undercuts claims by the Real Estate Board of New York in a study it released last year indicating that landmarking led to higher rates of retail vacancies. That study was based upon inaccurate data and assumptions, using a very limited comparison of one street in Hell’s Kitchen vs. a few cherry-picked streets in the West Village.

This survey, by contrast, is the first neighborhood-wide survey of retail vacancies in New York City looking at comparable landmarked and non-landmarked areas.

"While no study like this is conclusive, it certainly shows that historic districts and landmarked areas not only can but do thrive, even in this tough climate for retail in New York City," GVSHP Executive Director Andrew Berman said in a statement.

The survey was conducted by the East Village Community Coalition, the Cooper Square Committee and GVSHP.

ChaShaMa making a bank statement at former Santander branch on Avenue A

The former Santander back branch on Avenue A at Fourth Street is now serving as a pop-up gallery for the next month.

The folks behind ChaShaMa (hope MoMa doesn't sue!), a nonprofit that supports artists "by partnering with property owners to transform unused real estate into spaces to create, present and connect," are behind this exhibit...

The Mini Mono Mental group show, featuring "miniature yet monumental moments by 14 emerging, international artists," will be here through April 7. Storefront hours are Thursday through Sunday noon to 5 p.m. ...



This Santander branch closed at the end of April 2018.

Raising awareness of the vacant storefronts in the East Village

On Saturday, members of the Cooper Square Committee, FABnyc, the East Village Community Coalition and the Greenwich Village Society For Historic Preservation were out on Avenue B talking to residents about the surplus of vacant storefronts.

They invited people walking by 44 Avenue B between Third Street and Fourth Street "to think about what they need in the neighborhood that could fit in the currently empty space."

Here's more via the Cooper Square Committee:

There are over 200 vacant storefronts in the East Village, according to a count done by EVCC over the summer and fall. On Avenue B, nearly one in five storefronts is empty.

The event organizers are asking for the City Council to introduce policies and legislation that will protect, support and preserve small businesses in New York. Specifically, they are advocating for a citywide vacancy registry and penalty on landlords who deliberately warehouse space.

This local action is connected to the #EndCommercialVacancy campaign, a citywide effort coordinated by United for Small Business NYC (USBNYC).

Among the suggestions passersby made for businesses to fill some of these vacant spaces: a bakery selling fresh bread and a store offering affordable healthy food.

From the EVG archives:
There are more than 20 empty storefronts along Avenue B (December 2008)

New for lease sign at the old 7-Eleven space on St. Mark's Place

Just noting that a new for lease sign arrived this week at 37 St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue... this prime, 2,000-square-foot space has been vacant since the 7-Eleven closed here in late November 2013.

The listing at Winick notes that the rent is available upon request, and that the possession is "immediate."

Winick originally had the listing, before another broker took over at the start of 2017. Anyway, maybe this will be the year for a new tenant here.

Previously on EV Grieve:
A few more details about renting the former 7-Eleven space on St. Mark's Place

After nearly 4 years empty, 37 St. Mark's Place may be getting new retail tenants

Empty corner storefronts on Avenue A

Someone spray painted this message — "Tax Commercial Vacancies" — over the weekend on the side of the former Benny's Burritos space on Sixth Street and Avenue A.

In late March, Mayor de Blasio told the following to WNYC:

"I am very interested in fighting for a vacancy fee or a vacancy tax that would penalize landlords who leave their storefronts vacant for long periods of time in neighborhoods because they are looking for some top-dollar rent but they blight neighborhoods by doing it."

Anyway, by my count, there are currently six corner storefronts sitting vacant on Avenue A between Houston and 14th Street. (This doesn't count the new retail space for lease in Steiner East Village at 11th Street ... or the incoming Target at 14th Street.)

• Southeast corner of A and Second Street. The Chase branch closed here in November 2015. The space has had six or seven brokers since then. Last October, EastVille Comedy Club looked at taking part of the storefront. However, CB3 denied the application, citing, among other reasons, that this address was never licensed before and that it exists in a saturated zone.

• Northwest corner of A and Third Street. Landmark Bicycles closed here back in October.

• Northwest corner of A and Fourth Street. The Santander bank branch closed here on Friday.

• Southeast corner of A and Fifth Street. This space shouldn't be empty for too much longer: Mast Books is relocating here from a few storefronts away.

• Southwest corner of A and Sixth Street. Benny's shut down in November 2014. The owners of the bar the Black Rose were going to apply for a liquor license for this corner, but those plans never materialized.



• Southeast corner of A and 13th Street. I don't know exactly when Percy's Tavern closed. Back in August they started opening later in the day, foregoing weekend afternoons. In September, a reader told me they were done. I walked by to see — and they were open. My guess is they closed for good at the end of September, about the time applicants for the the Honey Fitz made an unsuccessful attempt for a new liquor license here.

Report: Mayor wants to penalize landlords for keeping storefronts vacant

[DF Mavens on 2nd Avenue has been tenant-free since January 2016]

From today's Post:

As a growing number of vacant storefronts dot the city, Mayor Bill de Blasio on Friday said he wants to penalize landlords who leave the shopfronts sitting empty.

“I am very interested in fighting for a vacancy fee or a vacancy tax that would penalize landlords who leave their storefronts vacant for long periods of time in neighborhoods because they are looking for some top-dollar rent but they blight neighborhoods by doing it,” he said on WNYC. “That is something we could get done through Albany.”

And...

The borough’s overall vacancy rates doubled from 2.1 percent to 4.2 percent between 2012 and 2017, according to a City Council report published in December. The report blamed landlords charging skyrocketing rents right as brick-and-mortar retailers are struggling with growing online competition.

High-rent blight: Senator's report finds nearly 10% vacancy rate on parts of 1st and 2nd avenues

[2 storefronts for rent on 1st Avenue between 13th and 14th]

Last week, State Sen. Brad Hoylman released the findings of a new report examining the growing specter of vacant storefronts in Manhattan.

Per a release on this report:

Combining on-the-ground data collection with firsthand accounts from small businesses, "Bleaker on Bleecker: A Snapshot of High-Rent Blight in Greenwich Village and Chelsea" looks at the causes and impacts of storefront vacancies and recommends solutions to address the problem.

The New York Times (here) and Jeremiah's Vanishing New York (here) reported on some of the findings.

The data Hoylman's office collected includes commercial sectors in the East Village:

· 18.4 percent vacancy rate along Bleecker Street from 6th to 8th Avenues

· 9.8 percent overall vacancy rate along First Avenue from 10th to 23rd Streets, Second Avenue from 3rd to 14th Streets, Eighth Avenue from 15th to 22nd Streets, and Bleecker Street from 6th to 8th Avenues

"Bleecker Street serves as a cautionary tale of how high rents in the Village and Chelsea are pushing out longtime independent business. We can’t simply allow market forces to run roughshod over our community any longer," he said.

His report provides a few solutions to address the growing problem of small business vacancies:

· Creation of a New York City Legacy Business Registry: The registry would track and maintain a list of small businesses that have been in operation for at least 30 years. This would enable New York State to recognize important businesses that in the future could potentially merit historic preservation tax credits and other benefits.

· Creation of Formula Retail Zoning Restrictions: This legislation would enable New York City to place limits on national chain stores.

· Phasing Out Tax Deductions for Landlords with Persistent Vacancies: Though landlords who leave retail storefronts vacant cannot deduct lost potential rental income, they are able to receive deductions for depreciation of property and operating vacancies. This proposal would disincentivize vacant storefronts by phasing out these deductions for building owners who leave retail spaces vacant over a year.

·Eliminating the Commercial Rent Tax: The Commercial Rent Tax (CRT) is an onerous and outdated burden on many small businesses. The tax only applies to commercial tenants in buildings below 96th Street in Manhattan, putting them at a distinct disadvantage compared to businesses elsewhere. State legislation could prevent the city from levying the Commercial Rent Tax on small businesses.

"I hope the ideas in my report will ignite a conversation about how we can assist small businesses before — not after — they face the seemingly inevitable reckoning of enormous rent increases," he said.

You can access a PDF of the report here.

On this topic, Community Board 3's Economic Development Committee is hosting a public forum next Wednesday night to discuss a proposed special district in the East Village "to encourage retail diversity and promote small and independent businesses."

Find the details here.

Storefronts at 110 E. 7th St. for rent

The for rent sign showed up this past Friday at 110 E. Seventh St., the former home of Porchetta.

The 8-year-old, quick-serve restaurant, which specialized in Italian-style roast pork sandwiches and platters, closed several weeks ago here between Avenue A and First Avenue.

Co-owner Matt Lindemulder told me that he was exploring several options and was looking forward to getting Porchetta up and running as soon as possible in a new location.

And it appears that both retail spaces at the address are available, according to the listing. (The rent is available upon request.) The other space housed Salon Seven. I do not know their status at the moment.

Neither here nor there but the Winick listing has a rundown of the neighboring businesses, four of which have closed or relocated.

The landlord is listed as Jakobson Properties.