In June, when the High Line's part two opened, I worried that the Firestone Bear auto shop would soon shutter. In July we first heard that the business had been given three months to live, but was fighting in court. Now, right on schedule, the shop has been emptied and surrounded by plywood. As Curbed reports, "the wrecked cars are gone, the tools cleared out and the 1-story garage is coming down."
That's how fast it happens.
Curbed: Bear Auto today--empty
One auto-related business or another has been on this corner lot for the past 70 years, but then the High Line arrived. And, as our local tipster told us in July, "The very expensive private school that is being built between 25th and 26th, a significant contributor to the High Line" might be interested in the space.
Bear Auto this summer--thriving
The closure of an auto-body shop may not break every heart, but it's another sign of how quickly and completely the High Line is destroying local, long-time, non-luxury businesses along its celebrated length. As AM New York recently wrote, "The lush green artery is killing off a chunk of New York’s entrepreneurial and gritty industrial past." Alan Brownfeld's third-generation auto business is fighting for its life. Even La Lunchonette--a French bistro on 18th and 10th since 1988--is under threat.
Who will be next?
Eagle Under Siege
Folsom Under High Line
Goodbye Poppy's
The Upper High Line
13 comments:
Occupy the High Line. Not kidding.l
agree, occupy highline. we can protest, marching up and down from gansevoort to 30th street, from opening to closing of the park. see how the cluless automatons like seeing the back the grit or 'meat' in meatpacking
penley if you're reading this, must organize this ...
i like it. it's a public park, right?
public park...for now -- won't be surprised when it's privatized
i would love to see the occupation march the length of the HL. how can we get that to happen?
if penley doesn't/can't organize this, i say speak to one of the leaders, or during the general assembly, at zuccoti park. it'd be perfect for friday, when the protesters are displaced during bloomberg's 'clean-up' of the zuccoti park
does anybody reading this have connections at Occupy Wall Street that they could suggest this?
Here's the phone number for OWS: 1-877-881-3020 and here's the email: general@occupywallst.org.
@Marty, the phone number has a VM that says that the number does not yet have VM. Anyway, I emailed the Vansishing link to OWS with the suggestion.
As I posted before on the EV Grieve tread re OWS coming to TSP, the people running this thing have got to ditch the bongos, the Che flags, etc, and take up the Stars and Stripes. I have emailed this suggestion to them as well.
Remember--"We The People".
http://constitutionus.com/
Wow, yes!!!
Public/private is a good question. It's supposed to be a public space, yet they deny artists the right to sell their work on the High Line, insisting they are a nuisance and danger to pedestrians. Then, they sell this same PUBLIC space to cookie and pizza vendors. If this is truly a public space, then it is not for sale and is open to everyone, especially those who uphold the First Amendment.
They didn't go out of business. The sign painted on the garage door says they relocated to 613 11th Avenue.
thanks SpragueD. it's up in the 40s and it looks like there's already a Firestone Auto at that address--maybe they're merging, or sending their customers up there.
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