A longtime drugstore is closing as a new hot pot restaurant and two new co-working spaces open on the Upper West Side.
Always Love drugstore at 144 West 72nd Street is closing. Employees there did not want to discuss the reason or the timing, but one said the store has been around for nearly 30 years. Thanks to Drew and others for the tips. Photo by Gus Saltonstall.
After years without any co-working spaces, the Upper West Side is getting two in the same month.
Spacious, a company that turns restaurants into co-working spaces during the day, is opening a new space in The Milling Room at 446 Columbus Avenue (82nd) on May 31. It will be open from 8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. They offer a free one week trial. More here.
Co-working company The Yard just opened a new location in Columbus Circle at 33 West 60th Street (above). “The newest location on the Upper West Side will provide more than 320 entrepreneurs with flexible, month-to-month, membership-based workspace with furnishings sourced in collaboration with West Elm, West Elm Workspace with Inscape and Knoll.” The Yard Lincoln Square is almost completely booked, so this gives Upper West Siders another option nearby. Learn more about it here.
CorePower Yoga, a Denver-based chain, just opened at 2030 Broadway (69th-70th), Suite 202. “The Upper West Side space features two heated studio rooms created with sustainable materials,” amNY reports.
Red Hot hot pot restaurant is set to open on next to Manhattan Brew & Vine on Columbus between 109th and 110th. That’s the second hot pot spot to open in the neighborhood in recent weeks. Thanks to Evan for the tip.
The former location of Josie’s on 74th and Amsterdam is getting something new. Amy P. asked around and learned from a doorman that it’s expected to be a bakery. Stay tuned, and let us know if you hear anything else…
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T&R Pizzeria on Amsterdam between 79th and 80th Streets now has a notice from the landlord on its door demanding back rent. T&R was one of the restaurants closed in February because of a gas leak in its building; the others have reopened. Thanks to our anonymous tipster.
Ah, the Love stores. They used to be as ubiquitous as the Duane Reades back in the “old days”.
Always Love has been a great asset to the neighborhood for a long time. The employees there are helpful and nice. What a shame.
Sorry to hear Love’s is closing. Nice people worked there and had been around forever. I have never seen so much turnover of stores on 72nd Street especially the South Side of the street where Loves is.
They went out of business due to a gas leak in the building Since January and they could not keep up with the delays in repairs they had to close. What do you expect it’s pizza joint !!
A Taiwanese – French bakery will open in Josies old space around August. They said their website is http://www.recolte.com
Oh no…..we always shop in Love’s…why are they closing? We’ve lost 2 DR’s and now Love’s. Love’s is a good store for upscale hair products and their prices are not ridiculously high like Ricky’s…can we do anything to keep them open? Also they have nice selection of general household merchandise. Our neighborhood is becoming increasingly useless. We really need a general merchandise store like Price Wise and a supermarket. So disappointing to see all the conveniences go …to be replaced by what? A daycare center? A cheap clothing store? Another pizza place? A lesson in how to destroy a neighborhood….here it is.
Places like Always Love, and even Duane Reade or Walgreens just cannot compete against online sales.
From eBay to regular commerce/retail websites there isn’t anything Always Love or any other “discount”/health and beauty product store sells that you often cannot find cheaper online. Especially when you factor in free shipping and not paying sales tax.
Duane Reade and Walgreens have closed a number of stores all over Manhattan, in particular on the UES and UWS. Rite Aid seems to survive but I guess that is because they are much less expensive than either DR or WG.
Isn’t Target or Walmart going in the Lohmann’s spot? I always thought those were general merchandise stores, including groceries.
Target! Target! Target!
Look if we are going to have a Bed, Bath & Beyond at the old Food Emporium space on 90th and B’Way and ANOTHER Trader Vicks at 90th and Columbus we can have a Target…why not?
I’ve been on the UWS almost 40 yrs, except for a couple yrs when I was a student and living in the Village. I was there when Kmart moved into that spot by Astor Place and it was no big deal and didn’t kill the character of the neighborhood. Just a cheap place to pick up a cheap blender or some towels or whatever.
Anyway, just my 2 cents. And as they say, that’s probably all it’s worth.:)
“Just a cheap place to pick up a cheap blender or some towels or whatever.”
That was exactly my point. General merchandise PLUS groceries. Both Target and Walmart carry a wide selection of items.
If the smaller stores are all closing anyway then why not have one of those in the neighborhood? Everything can’t be about coffee and bagels.
As for supporting the businesses that are still here, I think that’s what everyone has been doing all along, BUT they’re either losing their leases or closing of their own accord and very rarely do they tell the customers what’s going on until that CLOSED sign is on the door.
Ummm, it’s TRADER JOE’S.
And, you are very lucky to have them near you.
About 2 bucks LESS per item.. That’s PER ITEM.
Wow, you are right!
Does anyone remember Trader Vicks though?? For some reason now I feel like some rum punch served in a pineapple with a couple of umbrellas.
Reminds me of that song Werewolves of London….”I saw a werewolf drinking a pina colada at Trader Vicks…and his hair was perfect”. Great song, probably most famous for the Tom Cruise scene in The Color of Money. So classic. Scorsese, Newman, what more could you want?
Sorry Always Love store is closing. I don’t go to it that regularly (I’m closer to Joseph’s, among others), but when I have, I’ve enjoyed the “feeling” of the store and the variety of the products. It will be missed.
Always Love (the last remaining Love store). Known as 72nd Street Love at its inception and originally few businesses West of its current spot. It has been on 72nd Street for about 33/34 years. I use to be a Stock Boy there and have good memories of the place. One being , , , my teenage crush asking me for assistance on reaching a product on the top shelf. The beautiful Phoebe Cates 🙂
Manhattan Love on 77th and B’way (currently T-Mobile Store) was owned and managed by two brothers (Rick was one of them). Once the Love stores started declining in the 90’s, he went off on his own and started the successful chain – Ricky’s.
Good ol’ days of the UWS!
Awesome story AC.
Seems like we are about the same age because Phoebe Cates was my teenage crush as well…that red bikini from Fast Times at Ridgemont High is seared into my memory. Great movie too!! still holds up too after all these years.
“What do you think you are doing, Mr. Spicoli?!?
“Learning about Cuba….Having some food”:)
I *just* rewatched it for the billionth (no hyperbole!) time over the weekend!
LOL , , , Classic Movie!
Following up on my encounter , , , I went on break later that afternoon and decided to treat myself to a Hot Dog at Papaya’s down the block. While there, she walked in and ordered herself a dog and juice. She recognized me from the store and smiled at me. That made my entire year!
Fascinating, AC, thanks for the back story!
I am really, really sad to hear about Love’s! As others have said, it’s nice, clean, well-stocked, and the employees are helpful. 🙁
Landlord is taking hard line due to no rent received while he fixed gas leak. Should be a little more cooperative with a pizza place. Typical a-hole
Landlord sent a “three day notice” to tenant (T&R Pizza) which is the first salvo over the bow.
As with residential a LL cannot get back rent via the courts unless he has asked for it. Sending a three day notice starts a process that may or may not end in eviction. Again as with rental housing if T&R does not pay the sums demanded by expiration of notice LL can petition for eviction/termination of lease in court.
Going by the above notice posted to door; it appears January 2017 rent was paid, but no mention of February 2017 (when gas leak occurred) rent. March 2017 rent was late (hence the fee), and then you have April and May totally unpaid. The rest of sums owing is made up of late and maintenance fees and the water bill.
Two months late while not great, isn’t bad. For a business that was shut down for a month or more that had to hurt cash flow.
Finally as with residential commercial LLs often will and do accept rent a few days after a three-day notice has expired. No one wants to go to court and unless the LL truly thinks he can get another tenant in the space quickly and or T&R is not a good one, they may just work out a deal.
The Pizza place business interruption insurance covers the rent gap, just like your renters or homeowners pays when your home is uninhabitable.
Really? He’s an “A-hole” for trying to realize the greatest return for his investment? It always amazes me that folks on this thread seem to think that the ONLY business people in the world who are required to exercise a moral judgment rather than a business judgment are landlords. Levain can charge $5 for a fricken cookie but when a landlord charges an exorbitant amount, well then they are monsters. . .
1)The cookies at Levain are $4.
2)Suppose you had a contractual agreement with Levain to buy one cookie per day at $4/cookie. You go to the bakery on Monday, but it’s closed. You return on Tuesday, closed again. Wednesday, Thursday. Closed, closed. You arrive on Friday, relieved to see the bakery open again, but now they are trying to charge you $20 for a cookie, since you hadn’t bought a cookie for the last four days.
Now you can complain about bakeries and the pizzeria landlord in analogous situations.
3) Fricken? What are you 12 years old?
That is very upsetting about The Love Store. I have numerous friends there. They are always so nice and fun to be around.
The Love Store was a very well stocked and super neat and tidy store. Very nice people. Was a regular when I lived down the street and an “occasional” when I moved 25 blocks away.
***Another reminder to support your locally owned stores and restaurants before they disappear.***
The thing I will miss most about Love’s closing are the mirrors by the door. they are the best mirrors ever. Very flattering. If you don’t look good in them you need to go home and rest or change your outfit.
Like everyone else has said, sad to have Loves closing. The people who worked there were friendly and helpful. Very soon stores like these will just live in our memories of the good old days.
When I read about Spacious in the Milling Room,I was concerned that perhaps the Milling Room had closed, though it did not say so. I called and was very relieved to hear that they are staying open and allowing their restaurant to be used as a shared workspace while they are closed during the day. The Milling Room is one of my favorite restaurants–period–and I’m glad that not only are they open for business as usual but that they found a way to supplement their business because lunch time in our neighborhood is not necessarily good for nice restaurants. Not enough clientele.
This Love store was the last one run by the son of the original owner. Really nice man, staff nice and now this sucks since I always LOVED supporting a local business. Another local business closes and the cities alleged small business division fails again to help long time businesses.
I’ve lived in the neighborhood since 1972. Love Drugstore on 72nd Street will be missed. They epitomized the last gasp of “mom and pop”-type, small-scale, neighborhood stores with friendly help, certain products difficult to find elsewhere, and the charm of a store cat who had a little bed in the rear of the store. Sorry to see them go.
The love store on 72nd charged $7+ for toothpaste. Sad but I am not shocked they are closing.