99X is gone

I wanted to get to 99X on 10th Street one last time...



...but I was too late. The store closed last weekend.




Previously on EV Grieve:
Why 99X is closing

Why 99X is closing

Yesterday, we reported that 99X was closing up shop on 10th Street... we asked Bert at 99X via e-mail what happened:

It was a combination of things. Drop in sales/poor economy, a lot of stores went out on the block so there is not that much foot traffic, the rent is high and Fred Perry opened a store down in SOHO which took a lot of our business. Everything did not happen all at once but it all happened within the past year and has gotten us to where we are now.

99X is closing

As their slogan reads, "Outfitting the Underground since 1978."

I also looked at the store's Twitter account...



A shame. And I rarely walk on this stretch of 10th Street between Fourth Avenue and Third Avenue, a dead zone of empty storefronts....



...and stalled development...

Two more EV store closings

Gomi, the vegan/green boutique on Sixth Street near Avenue A, is closing.




And after 14 years of selling khakis and outerwear and stuff, Upland Trading on 13th Street between Third Avenue and Second Avenue is up for grabs.

Things that you will be able to smoke on Avenue B

Thanks to reader Elliot for passing along information on the former Lhasa Boutique on Avenue B between Third Street and Fourth Street.

We now have a photo of the store's new signage... The Exclusive Smoke Shop.



As Elliot noted: "It looks like there's already a good selection of bongs on the shelves inside."

Avenue C for change?

As I mentioned on April 20, yarn/fabric/gaming shop Olivo's on Avenue C near Fourth Street was closing. Elias Olivo, whose father opened the shop 36 years ago, told me recently that they're simply closing because business has been bad. While the new lease had a modest increase, he said they just couldn't make the business profitable any longer. Olivo said they would remain open for several more weeks.

Meanwhile, I wonder what will happen on this southern stretch of Avenue C. The eastern block between Seventh Street and Sixth Street has a newish high-end wine shop, a soon-to-open brickoven pizza joint called Mr. C's and two vacant storefronts advertising "luxurious" apartments and retail space.

What else is happening on Avenue C?

Fine Fair got a new paint job.



There are several empty storefronts on the west side of Avenue C between Sixth Street and Second Street...





And as I've speculated before, how long before the south side of C at Third Street looks like the north side?



And 272 E. Third St. is now for rent. It has been refurbished to house a doctor's office. (Rent: $4,950 a month.)



One last thing... Yoli (pictured at the left above), a delicious hole-in-the-wall Dominican restaurant with three tables, was closed last night when I walked by... Hope that's not a bad sign...

For further reading on EV Grieve:
What's happening at the Umbrella House?

Poopah's and other EV stores that are coming and going

Poopah's Pet Boutique on Sixth Street between Avenue A and Avenue B is closing on Sunday.



I've never been inside their store. According to their site, they feature "a stunning collection of Designer handmade products that are locally made and only found in New York City's East Village. We’ve stocked our store with all the essentials a pampered pup needs, from clothing, to stunning dog collars, to soft and warm comfy dog beds." Can't be an easy time for a shop like this, especially with people giving up their pets during the recession.

On the topic of stores... in recent months, I thought I'd try to keep tabs on what's coming and going... not so much to report that a new nail salon is opening, but more as a sign of the times... and as a way to monitor how the neighborhood might be changing, for better or worse.

Anyway, to be honest, so many shops/restaurants have closed, it's impossible to keep track. (And, despite the title, I actually don't have an intern...) Here are just a few of the empty storefronts...(There are many more, I know...) Many of them appear to be getting new tenants...

On East 10th Street between First Avenue and Avenue A...



On East 10th Street between First Avenue and Avenue A...



Avenue A near Third Street...



East Ninth Street near Avenue A...



This is now the new convenient store on First Avenue near Ninth Street...



East Ninth Street near First Avenue...



They were making a lot of noise in here the other day on Second Avenue near Fourth Street...Eater reports this is becoming an upscale coffee shop...



...Sixth Street between Avenue A and Avenue B...

Coming soon on Avenue B: "Exclusive Smoke Shop and Deli Corp."

The Tibetan specialty shop Lhasa Boutique on Avenue B near Fourth Street closed up in February. Replacing it: Looks like another convenience store.




This addition will bring the empty storefronts total down to 21.

Why have these storefronts been empty for so long?

Today, Jeremiah has a list of places loved — or just well-liked — around town that have been sitting empty with "for rent" signs.

Meanwhile, there are other storefronts in the LES/East Village that have seemingly been empty for years... Look at the recent photo below taken by the EV Grieve Intern of the former Tina Nails on First Avenue near 14th Street. The "Dear customers" sign remains. The place has been closed since September 2007.



Or how about the Coffee Pot (and, since last fall, Two Boots Restaurant) on Avenue A? Or the long dormant (and jinxed?) restaurant space at 171 Avenue A...?

These storefronts all seem like prime EV/LES locations. What gives? Shit economy? (Though some of these places have been empty since the recession...) Jinxed locations? Stupid landlords?

Here are just a few of the storefronts that remain empty....

There's the former Tonic space on Norfolk, sitting empty next to Blue.



And Kelley & Peng on the Bowery and Second Street.



Second Avenue and Third Street. (The one with the CRAZY landlord!)



East Sixth Street near Avenue A.



East Sixth Street near First Avenue.



Third Avenue near 12th Street.



First Avenue between First Street and Second Street.



First Avenue near East Seventh Street.



For further reading on EV Grieve:
Cafe de Nova space for rent; Avenue B back up to 22 vacant storefronts

The recession reaches Madison Avenue

Last Nov. 6, I did a post after walking on Madison Avenue in the 70s and 60s where all the really nice shops are.

Flashback!

And you know we didn't see one person shopping in any of these stores. Seriously. Post-election hangover perhaps? Or maybe the richies just don't shop in a light rain on weekday afternoons? Or maybe the economy is really fucked. Anyway, every store was the same: A handful of well-dressed employees standing around looking expectantly out the store windows.

So I wasn't surprised to read this in the Times today:

New York’s most elegant shopping corridor, the Gold Coast of Madison Avenue, from 57th Street to 72nd Street, is pockmarked with vacancies as retailers flee sky-high rents. More than two dozen retail spaces are on the market and are either empty now or about to be. Windows that once showcased hand-tooled leather suitcases are now plastered with for-rent signs.

“This is as bad as I’ve ever seen it,” said Alan Victor, a broker who has worked the street for more than four decades and who is an executive vice president of the Lansco Corporation.