Two years ago, I came up this old Yorkville deli on First Avenue and 78th. It had just closed. I loved the name and the sign and mourned the loss.
By accident, I passed by the same corner the other day. My Spidey sense was tingling. I knew I knew the crossroads somehow. Sure enough, the former home of Gold Star Deli. And no new tenant in two years time.
The sign was gone, but the interior was in the same shambles I remember, shelving here and boxes there.
Same posters in the window. Same ads.
It's a kind of work of urban art. And then there's this, an image replete with humor, pathos and irony:
Someone could do people in this city a great service by finding out why exactly landlords love to have their commercial properties left vacant for months or even years at a time. Its a prime case of what economists call "market failure", and obviously has pretty serious and entirely negative consequences for the city.
ReplyDeleteI suspect something along the lines of accounting fraud and/ or a tax dodge, but it would be nice to get a more informed explanation.
It does seem to happen often. Old business kicked out by rent hike. Then a vacant space for months, years.
ReplyDeleteIt's possible that there were no rent hikes but the deli went out of business for other reasons. The fact that there's a "for rent" sign presumably means that the landlord is not happy with the vacancy.
ReplyDeletePeter
It's possible.
ReplyDeleteThe state of the place would indicate that the landlord expect the money to come to him with minimal effort.
They were emptying this entire block front a few years ago. I suspected then that they were planning on tearing the old buildings down and developing. Over time, I suspected that the real estate bust had put a wrinkle in that plan.
ReplyDeleteThe entire corner, 1487-1493 is razed and sitting empty right now waiting for construction. The couple who ran the Gold Star back when I lived there in the 80's were wonderful. Friendly. Catch a Rising Star was on the block, as well as the original Burritoville. The buildings (at least 1487-89) were owned by the Moinians so I assume there is a high rise going up. Took a photo of the lot but no way to post.
ReplyDelete