14th and 3rd
Back in November I made the rather predictable prediction that the low-rise buildings on the southeast corner of 14th and 3rd would soon fall. Curbed confirmed it in December, revealing the big, glass-box monstrosity to come. And this week, the corner has fallen into rubble.
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more pics of 14th and 3rd
I don't think it's a coincidence that this corner has come down so soon after the rise of the gargantuan 110 Third. It seems that wherever luxury condos sprout, their low-rise neighbors come down within months.
before:
after:
more pics of 14th and 3rd
I don't think it's a coincidence that this corner has come down so soon after the rise of the gargantuan 110 Third. It seems that wherever luxury condos sprout, their low-rise neighbors come down within months.
I live right nearby on 16th st and I've been watching that new condo go up...it was sad to see the small shops torn down when they started, worse to see the garish new retail tenants (as if 6th ave wasn't a crappy mall to start with!), and horrible to see the last stragglers closing down. I worry that the parking lot across the street, home to the weekend flea market, may fall to condo-land soon. Nor can I stand the constant construction dust between that place on 18th and the yves building. Yuck.
ReplyDeleteI will miss Robin Raj which always had fascinating stuff in the window but nothing similar inside. The mystery of how they chose their window displays will never be known. I don't know where else I will buy little plastic bottles. These stores are/were the character of our 'hood that will never be replaced as it turns into one giant outdoor shopping mall of blandness and uniformity. And, you can't buy food in a shopping mall, which is why we have no place left to get fresh meat, fish and fewer and fewer that sell produce.
ReplyDeleteThe real issue that this post highlights very well is there are increasingly smaller places for small businesses to get set up.
ReplyDeleteAnd it's also connected to the chain stores coming to NYC. Take for example, Target and K-Mart. I needed to get some dry-wall anchors today and my instinct being born in NYC was to go to Canal Street. Back before it was filled with bootleggers, the place was basically a hardware/handyman/electrician supply mecca. True surplus! And it was great. Now, not much there like that. Except the rubber/foam store. Which will most likely disappear in the next decade; who do they sell to?
Manufacturing leaves NYC because of increased cost and the small stores and shops that support local manufacturing disappear. And soon enough the lofts filled with workers are now filled with folks who don't want cheap pizza and bagels. Thus, those other stores close.
Where did I get my dry-wall anchors? K-Mart. Literally the only place I found that was open that had them.
What's sad is if you look at Etsy and eBay, just picture any major seller there as a shop owner. Seriously. 30 years ago, someone who made jewelry from their home or sold old toys could open a storefront and set up that way. Now, the stores are for the truly rich. And small mom & pop industries are back in the home.
It's all out of balance and I am rambling a bit, but at what point does someone look out their glass cocoon they paid $2 million for and say: "Why do we live here?"