[Photo from August by James Maher]
Back in July, the owners of three business had to vacate their storefronts due to a structural issue in an apartment above in 300 E. Fifth St. just east of Second Avenue.
Since then, Jamie the check-cashing guy, whose family has owned the business for 68 years, had been operating from a secure van outside his shop.
Unfortunately, he wasn't able to make it work as repairs dragged on in the building.
Today is his last day.
The check-cashing business has been at the current address for 58 years … and on East 10th Street for 10 years before that. Jamie's grandparents opened the shop in 1946.
We interviewed him for our Out and About in the East Village feature back in September.
My grandparents used to take me into the store when I was 8 years old. They had four stores. All the brothers and my grandfather had a store. There was another store on Broadway and Bleecker. I was always taken to that store. That was where my grandmother would take me, away from my grandfather and uncle. I was always the guy running up the bills, when everything was pen and paper. On the weekends if I didn’t run out fast enough it was, ‘You’re helping grandma today.’ That was how I got started.
Previously on EV Grieve:
3 small businesses temporarily closed due to structural issues at 300 E. 5th St.