View from the Ravel Hotel at the Queensboro Bridge, Long Island City
It’s been a while since we’ve done a business openings post, for obvious reasons, but there’s still life brewing in Long Island City’s retail scene »
Purple Pumpkin closes doors on Vernon Blvd, Long Island City
Well, well, well. How things can change so dramatically from one season to the next. 2008 saw more business openings in Long Island City than we could keep up with, and now in 2009 we’re seeing more retail vacancies than ever in Vernon/Jackson, including multiple businesses which seem to have gone under.
Next Level Floral didn’t even bother with the signs. They just quietly disappeared from their Vernon Blvd storefront (at 44th Drive) without a peep. The Purple Pumpkin has also closed their doors on Vernon, but are keeping up business activity on the website. It’s rumored that another Vernon business might move into the space, but it’s speculation at the moment so we’ll just leave it at that. Spa DiSilva didn’t even get officially started, but now they’re officially finished, and the retail space is for rent.
Generally, things are looking pretty bleak for retail on Vernon right now. Vacancies include »
The Creek sans the cave, Jackson Ave @ the Pulaski Bridge, Long Island City
Business deals live and die like everything else in LIC (and the world) so it shouldn’t have come as any surprise (it didn’t) to liQcity to discover the following »
Verizon Wireless coming to LIC
Well, maybe some will sing a happy tune for Verizon Wireless in LIC, but at liQcity, we’re always hoping for more independent commerce to serve the needs of the exploding community. A liQcity tipster sent a photo of the Verizon Wireless sign in the right ground floor retail spot of the Echelon condos. (No word on what’s happening to the left retail spot.)
Hunters Point Wines, Vernon, LIC
It’s a rainy Thursday night in LIC… what to do?
Well…if you want to get your drink on, and for free, you can go to one of the two wine tastings going on at a couple of LIC’s most prized wine shops, Hunters Point Wines (6-8pm) and Court Square Wine (4:30-7p). For those who complain about lack of amenities in LIC, we certainly have an abundance of alcohol distributors.
Lots of good conversation going on these days. The Vernon rumors delivered yesterday, and an older post about the CUNY dorm building, has inadvertently created an informal LIC wish list. So we’ve decided to tally the requests, and present them to the vast sea of enterprising entrepreneurs out there; some of whom might understand what it is to live and start a business now in LIC.
There seems to be a general preference amongst the actual residents for the independent, local chain, and mom/pop type retail amenity, over national brands. Save for probably a decent pharmacy (which is delivering in Queenswest in the form of a Duane Reade). Brokers and developers are more interested in the national brands of course, as they can pay high premiums on the new GF retail emerging with the residential development.
C-town grocery store on 21st St, Hunters Point, LIC
We at liQcity have enjoyed lamenting about the lack of grocery store in Hunters Point. As it turns out, we were wrong – as has been frequently pointed out by a regular commenter. (You know who you are.) We were in denial! Or we just actually never visited the C-town at the corner of 44th Drive and 21st St, in Courthouse Sq, which as we all know, is a part of Hunters Point.
All that’s changed now. We went there. It’s a bona-fide grocery store folks. It’s small, but they have all the basics. The produce section is decent. There are both yuppy and hipster vittles, though somewhat limited. Mostly mainstream, commercial products. But it was decently clean, and much more gently priced than the E & I Deli on Vernon Blvd.
It’s located right next to a subway entrance for the E,V,G trains, which is convenient, but it sort of serves a limited geography. It’s still not very accessible for Vernon-Jackson residents, and Queenswesters might as well go to Astoria or Greenpoint for fancier stores that are just as far. Courthouse Square residents who are off Jackson Ave also are probably more easily served by Greenpoint. Oh yeah, and the hours are relatively limited. Didn’t see any officially posted, but they don’t seem to be open past 8pm or so.
Overall, C-town in Hunters Point gets a B/B-. The hours could be longer, some of the buying could be improved, but the prices are reasonable, and it’s relatively clean and maintained. So, we’ll be busy modifying our battle-cry for a grocery store in Vernon-Jackson and Queenswest. Long Island City and it’s subneighborhoods! Sheesh.
[For more of a peek inside C-town »]( http://www.liqcity.com/life/hunters-point-actually-does-have-a-grocery-store-albeit-a-small-one.php#full)
Hunters Point Wines and Spirits, 47-07 Vernon Blvd, 718.472.WINE
Vern-Jax’ers may not have a grocery store, but we certainly have an abundance of places to pick up booze. But booze is hardly what Hunters Point Wines & Spirits is selling in their remarkably beautiful storefront on Vernon Blvd between the 47th’s. Owner Paul Huston has been in the wine business for 30 years and not only does he know wine, but he’s also an LIC lifer. I think I’ve seen a lot of change in 4 years… imagine what LIC must have been like 30 years ago. It certainly wouldn’t have hosted a store like this.
HP Wines specializes in hard-to-find handcrafted bottles, as opposed to what Huston refers to as ‘mass-produced commercial horseshit’. And from the looks of things, he’s telling the truth. I spent this morning chatting with Mr. Huston, who like all good wine connoisseurs, is passionate about his product and showed me an artisan crafted sake produced and hand delivered to the emperor of Japan. It’s probably not hand delivered to Vernon, but it’s definitely a great example of the rare treats stocked on those gorgeous shelves. Which includes a great selection of spirits, as well as organic and biodynamic wines.
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