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In the News: What to Do About All Those Empty Storefronts?
••• A New York Times editorial laments all the empty storefronts in the city and cites two possible ways to address them. “One idea floated among lawmakers is to restructure the commercial rent tax, a 54-year-old levy that principally affects business tenants in Manhattan below 96th Street. If their annual rent bill exceeds $250,000, they must pay the city 3.9 percent of it. This is on top of any real estate taxes they may also owe.” Why hasn’t this happened already, Bill de Blasio? “Another idea that merits consideration—and is likely to need Albany’s approval—is some sort of a ‘vacancy tax’ on those landlords who leave storefronts unoccupied for years, hoping against hope that Sephora or Marc Jacobs or whatever will move in someday.” When in doubt, tax someone? Exactly whom do proponents think is going to move into all of these empty spaces?
••• The Broadsheet has more details and new renderings for the Battery Maritime Building project, now that it has new developers onboard.
••• “Saint Joseph Chapel, the Catholic church located in Gateway Plaza since 1983, is slated to close in January, according to an announcement from the parish leadership that was circulated among congregants on Thursday morning.” —Broadsheet
••• “A new interactive public art installation is making its way to Manhattan’s Seaport District […] Sea of Light [debuts] December 5. Spheres of various sizes, ranging up to nine feet in height, will be illuminated with warm-colored light from over 150,000 LED bulbs, and will react to various movement and sound patterns. Each individual interaction will provoke a unique lighting pattern that makes for a rare winter art experience.” —Curbed
••• The New York Times discovered that WeWork is getting into the education business.
••• “A 47-year-old Manhattan woman removed her $9,000 Rolex watch while she was taking a shower and then forgot it in the stall. When she returned after about five minutes, she discovered that it had been stolen.” Is “stolen” the right word? How about “placed in the custody of someone who values a $9,000 watch enough to be careful with it”? —Tribeca Trib
••• “The owner of perpetually busy East Village restaurant MáLà Project has opened a new Chinese restaurant downtown, this time focusing on home-style Chinese cuisine. Tomorrow [that’s the name], located at 200 Water Street between John and Fulton Streets, started serving $10 meal deals and more in FiDi earlier this week.” Below: Tomato and egg. —Eater
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From the same blotter (fool me once…):
54 Murray (Equinox), 9/17, 5:30 pm (reported 9/24)
A 40-year-old Thomas Street resident placed her $5,000 Cartier Ballon Bleu watch on a ledge before entering the locker room shower. When she got out, she discovered that it was gone.
The blotter is filled with “stupidity thefts” such as gym lockers left open, wallets and handbags left unattended. I wonder what percent they are of all those reported. I’m not counting “handbag on the seat next to you” thefts.
Rather certain Tomorrow is on Pearl Street between John and Fulton where Num Pang was for a very brief moment. Any 3 items for $10…looking fwd to sampling one day soon.
The entire building is 200 Water.
How can you shoplift $4000 worth from Urban Outfitters and not get noticed? And who knew Rogaine has street value?
I was on West 8th Street between Broadway and University yesterday and was stunned by the number of empty storefronts. Much worse than any other street I’ve seen.
Those are largely Friedland Properties, if I recall correctly.
Here is what commenter wrote on this Times editorial:
“This problem is not unique to NYC. In Mount Kisco, NY (Westchester County) there have been several stores empty for years. Friedland Properties is the landlord for several of these spots. Friedland is also one of the biggest landlords for Madison Avenue. Mount Kisco business owners have been complaining about being priced out for years”
Why why why do people bring these pricy watches to the GYM?
I am flabbergasted by this.
I cannot keep track of the seemingly endless amount of these stories that appear in the Tribeca Trib.
Over and over the same thing.
Hello Rolex owners: “LEAVE IT AT HOME!”
Why is everyone blaming the victim of a theft?
Being careless, absent-minded, or too trusting of others does not merit being robbed.
Adults are expected to take reasonable precautions against reasonably foreseeable risks. People who have $5,000 or $9,000 to spend on a watch, plus the money to join a gym and the free time to use it, should really know better.
NYPD has tried for 10-15 years to promote awareness of the issue.
For example:
Health Club Safety Tips. (http://www1.nyc.gov/assets/nypd/downloads/pdf/crime_prevention/NYPDcptips_HealthClub.pdf)
TIPS FOR YOUR PERSONAL SAFETY
What Can I Do?
Security cameras are not allowed inside a health club locker room – and perpetrators know that. Membership safety may rest with the club owners, but you are still urged to follow certain safety precautions to thwart thieves:
Vigilance
Remain alert while wearing headphones or watching television during a workout. Opportunists often target people who are preoccupied.
Distractions
At times a perpetrator may not be alone; diversion, including loud music, is a common ploy used to remove one’s belongings.
Combo Lock
Use a combination lock on your locker – keys can disappear.
Shallow pockets
Wallets, cell phones, money, and keys can become visible – don’t temp a thief.
Consign valuables
Upon arrival, ask the front desk to safeguard valuables in the health club safe. Do not leave these items in your car. Please be smart and stay safe!
Many people seem to assume all of these reported thefts are true. Some could very well be fake. To file an insurance claim for property theft you need a police report. You will notice many of these “stolen” items are high end worth thousands of dollars. Stupidity thefts or clever insurance scams?
Do you have a single news story of a false theft report? There are lots of stories about arrests for gym thefts and lots of police attention. That’s not typical of invented crimes.
Even dumber are the guys who take home women from bars who then steal their Rolexes.
https://nypost.com/2017/11/21/temptress-gets-slap-on-the-wrist-for-swiping-watches-from-wealthy-men/
As I said, some of the reports of theft could be fake. A police report is necessary for the insurance claim. Certain police reports are accessible to the public and some media outlets like the Tribeca Trib publish them under headings such a Police Blotter as a way of informing their readers of crimes in the area. They also provide content to fill space. You won’t ever see any follow up reports about whether a claim was fraudulent or not. Those transactions are private between the insurance company and the claimant. If an insurance company feels a claim is fraudulent they won’t pay it. If they pay a fraudulent claim its because they were presented with documentation they believed to be real such as a bill of sale. An accompanying police report adds validity to the claim. I could walk into a police station now and report a list of very expensive items of mine were stolen and as a matter of procedure they make a report. And then you will read about it on a website somewhere.
Did NYPD or any insurance company anywhere in NYC ever make an example of someone filing a false theft report in an attempt to defraud an insurance company?
There is just too much police focus on gym thefts for there to be any significant amount of fraud IMO.
https://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20160511/union-square/gym-thief-caught-after-lock-breaking-spree-across-manhattan-police-say.amp
https://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20161102/midtown/batman-rolex-locker-room-nypd-theft.amp
https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Gym-Locker-Thief-New-York-Sports-Club-Manhattan-410887645.html?amp=y
https://nypost.com/2017/08/31/police-search-for-gym-rat-responsible-for-ymca-robberies/amp/
http://www.silive.com/news/2014/08/staten_island_gym_locker_thiev.html
From The New York Times: “Detectives Are Now Calling ‘Gotcha’ Far From the Scene of the Theft”
The New York Police Department has established a Grand Larceny Division, which examines patterns, like breaking into gym lockers, to identify suspects.
https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/16/nyregion/detectives-are-now-calling-gotcha-far-from-the-scene-of-the-theft.html
There is a difference between what has been referred to above as a “stupidity theft” and someone using force to break into a secured locker to steal valuables. The NYPD looks for patterns and, more often than not, the perp doesn’t stop at one locker or one gym as noted in your links. That’s not the same as “Oops, I left my $9,000 Rolex in the shower and now it is gone.” As I wrote earlier, its either a stupidity theft or clever insurance scam IMO.