Two businesses with a combined 72 years in the neighborhood are closing up shop, while a new business will allow you to channel your inner Van Gogh. Oh, and there’s a new bank coming, of course.
West Side Stationers is closing after 31 years on 108th street and Broadway. “The person behind the counter — I believe he is an owner — told me today they were given notice a week or so ago to get out by the end of the month,” our tipster Joe Rappaport tells us. “There is already another tenant scheduled to come in, he said. I know this won’t shock anyone, but he said it’s a bank. His space would be combined with the vacant storefront next to him (a deli was there for a few years and closed more than a year ago)… I found West Side Stationers to be a reliable source of good pens (which I often buy there) and other office supplies. The prices were often comparable to Staples, and the service was very friendly. It’s a real loss to the neighborhood.”
Nail salon Golden Nails at 113th and Broadway closed about recently after 41 years in business. Thanks to Joe for the photo. The family will continue to sell jewelry at Goldmine Jewelers at 265 Amsterdam Avenue.
The former Crumbs shop on Broadway just south of 109th street is set to become a Santander Bank, a construction worker told our tipster Jill.
Fertility clinic Reproductive Medicine Associates of New York has moved from West 59th Street to 200 W 57th Street.
Paint & Sip Studio NY, a new business that lets people drink wine while learning to paint, is set to open on the fourth floor of 246 West 80th street. You bring your the wine, and they’ll supply the artistic expertise. “This fun adventure in art begins when you pick a class, bring a drink and get ready to get creative. In our relaxed, studio environment, experienced local artists will guide you step-by-step through making a featured painting.” It’s set to open on May 7. See the website here.
Gartner’s Hardware on 72nd between Broadway and Columbus is moving down the block, opening at 162 West 72nd street, the former home of a combined Cold Stone Creamery and Tim Horton’s doughnut shop. Thanks to Ann and Harriet for the tips.
i hope West Side Stationers other location on 99th and Bway is not closing as well. I am a regular customer, and the owner, Paul, is a real community small businessman, old school
We need some protection for these small shops. Period. London does it (enforced rent aribitration), why can’t NY?
Save NYC: the best plan to save small businesses that I have seen.
woops: forgot the link:
https://gothamist.com/2015/03/20/savenyc.php
I have a better plan: all UWSers, patronize nothing but local Mom & Pops. Don’t visit the natl chain stores and stop using the Internet to order stuff. also, never give any business to any neighborhood chain store / national brand store. I guarantee that you will get the desired results.
You are kidding, right? Stop using the internet to order stuff? Good luck with that!
And if we all eschewed cars, the buggy whip makers would come back.
So Gale Breuer what happened to keep small businesses in business. Yes just what we need another bank!!!.
So we have
– Citi at 111th
– Chase at 109th
– Santander between 108th and 109th
– BOA at 107th
and another to occupy the west side of Broadway between 108th and 109th?
Recently I spoke to a bank representative who told me that the plethora of banks in the neighborhood was do to the number of international students going to Columbia. I can’t imagine that being the case.
Since landlords don’t tend to live in the neighborhoods where they own property and, profit is their only motivation – the character of the neighborhood matters not.
Worse are those owned by a business entity where a relationship between the landlord and tenement cannot form – greed versus need.
– William
http://www.10025.com
Also left out were TD Bank at 109th and Banco Popular at 112th. At 113th St is a Chase location full only of ATMs.
For many, many years there were only 4 banks between 106 and 116th. Now with ATMs, direct deposit and online banking there is less need to go into a bank and yet we are going to have 9 banks between 107 and 112th?
You left out the Chase at 112th and whatever it is up at 113th.
I know real estate interests have a very vocal (and advertising) presence on this blog and have brought out the “market forces” and related arguments before but this is a real loss.
Not only does this business stock a good selection of decently priced items but the staff is super friendly and helpful. It was a pleasure doing business there.
This is the kind of useful business that a neighborhood needs.
Yet another bank – and another one across the street at the old Crumbs.
This is just sad.
community people can develop a more vocal presence to counter the landlord / real estate interests. We are the majority.
we are losing so many of the Mom and Pop stores that gave the UWS its character.
i think this is not limited to the UWS but is going on throughout the city.
I’m a “community person” but I happen to support the principles of capitalism, the free market, and creative destruction. I have no vested interest in real estate as I can’t afford to buy an apartment here despite what would be consider a high income anywhere else in the country. But thanks for stereotyping.
Really unfortunate to loose West Side Stationers. The clutter inside was always a bit annoying, but they were always nice and fairly priced.
I don’t understand why banks keep opening branches in this era of electronic banking. I only visit the inside of a branch once or twice a year.
I have to admit I haven’t been in West Side Stationers in 10 years. On the other hand, I’m in and out Janoff’s a couple times a month.
Bank’s, by their nature, are in the business of making money. They are not going to open a branch if they don’t think that they will profit by doing so. Ergo, they have determined, correctly, that people like having convenient access to banks, and are willing to pay market rates to open their branches. Shouldn’t we be encouraging services that people want and need to move into our neighborhood, while at the same time driving up property values for home owners and even landlords, many of whom themselves are small businesses?? If as many people hated banks as say they hate banks on this site, there would be no banks opening up. Clearly, however, the posters to this site are in the minority.
Banks don’t actually turn a profit with their storefronts in Manhattan. They’re largely considered part of the advertising budget. People do most of their banking online, but they tend to choose “brands” with ubiquitous locations because they still like the sense of convenience, even if they never take advantage of it.
Thank you, Joe, for pointing out something so obvious but somehow had escaped my understanding. The very vocal presence of shills for real estate interests on the UWS. For instance, the vociferous support for building skyward at 711 WEA is a great example. People in the building don’t want it. Neighboring buildings don’t want it. PS 75 doesn’t want it. Car owners don’t want it. (I could go on) Yet, the outcry of support!!!! Now I understand where it came from. Thank you, Joe.
Someone gave me an interesting perspective on why we have so many banks/drugstores etc. These companies invest in the real estate leases hoping for a better return on their money over the long term than a cash investment.
So that Duane Reade that moves across the street probably found a tenant willing to pay the asking price at the old place….which goes to the leaseholder (duane reade).
I never send in comments…but this news is just too awful. With the West Side Stationers closing AND a Satander Bank taking over the former Crumbs on Broadway (109), there will TWO new banks opening almost directly across the street from each other.
At what point does the the neighborhood reach banker saturation ???
SAD TO SEE THE NEIGHBORHOOD SLOWLY LOOSING ITS CHARACTER 🙁
WE MOVED FROM 205 COLOMBUS AVE AFTER 72 YEARS. NOW LOCATED AT 250 72nd STREET
EMERALD INN
WHERE LOCALS MEET
It’s too bad the neighborhood has already lost its ability to use the caps lock and shift keys, as well as the ability to spell “lose.”
This is truly sad. As a small business owner on the UWS myself, it’s hard to see all the small shops keep shutting down one after the other. These are the small shops that give the UWS it’s character that we all know and love. I understand that time brings change but isn’t that change supposed to be for the best? How long before we become the next midtown, where it’s all large chain stores and banks/Duane Reade’s at every corner? I appreciate what SAVE NYC is trying to do for all the small businesses still afloat in NYC but this is something that needs to be taken up by our city government before it’s too late and the UWS just ends up blending in with the rest of this commercial city…
thank you Marco. I agree with you.
the point of #SAVENYC is to pass legislation citywide that would help: especially the rent arbitration system, which they have in London and apparently has been effective in controlling commercial rents.
Gale Brewer also has a plan with some good ideas but for some reason she did not get on board with #SAVENYC’s commercial rent arbitration plan.
https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/city-pol-give-small-businesses-1-year-break-eviction-article-1.2159053
I can’t wait to try Sip and Paint!
The block between 111th and 112th is a disaster. Bank Street Book Store moved. Varelli is gone, and the card and toy shop moved next door. Also, one wonders if they will ever do anything with the Citibank building on 111th and Broadway. It’s been 15 months since the fire and it’s a real eyesore.
Forgive my lack of knowledge on the subject, but to what extent are the landlords of the spaces (co-op/condo) to blame for this. I find it hard to blame a bank (or any other business for that matter) in this. They merely lease a space.
Who exactly terminates the leases for small business. Who is responsible for raising the rents to the point that these small business no longer can afford to stay in the neighborhood? This may be the coreof the issue in Brewers/SaveNYC plan.
It may be easier to point the finger at a business but maybe we should be looking at ourselves.
In the case of West Side Stationers, the commercial space is controlled separately from the residential co-op above it. While the two entities have some common obligations towards the upkeep of the building, the co-op has no say whatsoever as to how the commercial leases are handled.
Or as my real estate lawyer called it, the building is a condop. My own building is one such, so the co-op residents see zero benefit from whatever the ground floor commercial space rents for. IIRC, the commercial space is still owned by the sponsor.
But remember: the profit motive makes everything BETTER. Who would want GOOD stores when you can have BANKS?
Sad. I liked that Stationery store. They were some of the good people.
The landlord is one of the LOUSY people. I’d like to boycott everything he owns.
https://www.change.org/p/savenyc-support-the-small-business-jobs-survival-act?recruiter=8794318&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=share_twitter_responsive
Didn’t a zoning law pass a couple of years ago limiting new storefronts to less that 40 feet? The combined stationary store and other store front are less than 40 feet?