On the left, we have our NYC contender Elaine (74.6% Perfection!/11% I feel strangely ambivalent about it/14.3% Who did this to you?) wearing a coat from Banks (a furrier downtown), a Ruffalo suit, glasses from Friedrich's Optik and Milano Blanco shoes and carrying a Chanel bag.
On the right, we have our LA contender Jessica (25.4% Perfection!/22.5% So close/40.8% I feel strangely ambivalent about it/11.3% Who did this to you?) wearing a dress, shoes and jewelry from various Downtown LA boutiques and Chanel glasses.
Today's Street Scenes subject is Elaine, shot outside Bergdorf on Fifth Avenue in Midtown. Feel free to vote on whether you like or dislike her outfit below. Your choices are 'Perfection!,' 'I feel strangely ambivalent about it,' or 'Who did this to you?'
Elaine is wearing a coat from Banks (a furrier downtown), a Ruffalo suit, glasses from Friedrich's Optik and Milano Blanco shoes and is carrying a Chanel bag. Her favorite store is Bergdorf.
Out there in the distance, shining like a beacon of ... something, it's a different bank branch to feel conflicted about. Harlem Fur spots an HSBC at 112th and Frederick Douglass Boulevard, a relative newcomer to Uptown's collection of storefronts, and it feels "kinda like getting Ventnor Avenue when collecting all of the Monopoly properties in the McDonald's game (rare, but not that rare)."
· Harlem Adds a Rare HSBC to its Bank Collection [Harlem Fur]
The estimable Faith Hope Consuelo, commercial real estate heavy, penned an essay for the Times this past weekend, in which she opines on myriad topics, including The Banks: "As for banks, I'm not going to say it's over, but it’s at a hush. In the last five years, you had all these new banks like Commerce and Washington Mutual, and each had to be bigger than the other. First it was 2,000 square feet, then it was 3, then it was 5. Last year I was doing 10,000- and 15,000-foot banks for Chase...But I feel it’s like another trend, and we drive with the trend. You have to remember, this is New York. The landlords pay us, so we let them make the decision...You’re going to see that drugstores are the new banks." [NYT]
City planners are so totally over all the bank branches that have been popping up around the city of late. So they've decided to do something about the trend. According to City Room, when they sat down to discuss the rezoning of 125th Street, planners decided to restrict bank growth in the area. The new rules: "[banks] cannot occupy the ground floor of new buildings along 125th Street, between Broadway and Second Avenue, or the ground floor of new enlargements to existing buildings. They may, however, have an entranceway or lobby on the ground floor that leads to banking space on another floor. A limited amount of ground-floor space may be devoted to automated teller machines." Yeah, stick it to 'em real good! Well, kinda good.
· Zoning Restricts Bank Branches on 125th Street [City Room]
1) East Harlem: Via a press release, we learn that Wachovia Bank has its eye trained on development The Bridges at 2283 Third Avenue and 124th Street. The bank will occupy a luxurious 3,500 square feet. According to maleficent superstar broker Faith Hope Consolo, responsible for the deal, 'Banks are fueling the retail renaissance currently underway in East Harlem.' Who knew? [Racked Inbox]
2) Williamsburg: America's "most convenient bank", Commerce, is landing on Bedford Avenue and North 4th Street in the 'burg. "Yay! Coinstar!" crows the Racked reader who forwarded the tip. According to their website, that branch will open in July. Commerce has three other Brooklyn locations (Fort Hamilton, Bay Ridge, Ralph Avenue) slated to open within the year. [Racked Inbox]
It's time again for a little thing called Mo' Banks, in which we profile new checking and saving spots around town. If you've spotted a bank opening or (heaven forbid, closing), do let us know. And now, on to the banks!
1) Noho/Central Village: The general public is usually displeased when a store or restaurant is shuttered to make way for another generic bank branch. That was not the case with dingy, now-closed University Place eatery BBQ, which readers were happy to learn would be replaced by a bank. At that time, the identity of the bank taking over the space was unknown; now we see it's going to be a North Fork (pictured above). Will they be able to scrub the place free of the scent of greasy ribs? TBD! [Racked Staff]
2) Park Slope: Hot bank news from the Brooklyn Eagle: "A bank is moving into a portion of the 4,500-square-foot vacant space on the corner of Seventh Avenue and Sixth Street, said building owner Larry Wittlin, declining to reveal the bank name due to 'contractual agreements.'" Mysterious. [Brooklyn Eagle]
Once in a while, we pull letters from the Racked Inbox and post them for your enjoyment and/or enlightenment. Want to contribute? We're listening. Anonymity always assured.
It's no secret that banks have eclipsed Duane Reade and perhaps even Starbucks with their unchecked growth. Landlords see them as safe bets, quiet tenants (unlike bars) that are willing to pay high rents. Some areas of the city, like the stretch of Eighth Avenue in Chelsea between 14th and 20th Street, are clearly overbanked, and other nabes aren't too far behind. What will stop the madness? One reader thinks that the city should step in:
What would it take to pass an ordinance limiting the number of banks that can pop up in the city? I was thinking something similar to the sex-shop law from the late '90s. Only, instead of forbidding banks within 500 feet of residences, they would be forbidden within 500 feet of each other (I'm willing to lengthen the distance, if possible).
Porn shops at least serve the community in many ways. They temper rents, have dance-related jobs to those who couldn't make it into the American Ballet Theatre, and offer a safe space for people who would otherwise rub one out on the subway. Banks provide nothing but crumpled receipt litter and bright lighting that makes everyone look pale and tired. The only exception I can think of is the Washington Mutual ATM branch on Bleecker street that also seems to have become a urinal for local indigents and drunks.
[Park Avenue South between 28th and 29th; click to enlarge. Photo by Femia.]
Not that Park Avenue South, especially the upper stretch, has ever been anything remotely resembling a shopping Mecca. Still, it's eerie to see an entire block's worth of stores close down—a reminder, perhaps, of the fleeting moments retail outlets enjoy upon this earth. After Curbed reported on the retail carnage that has shuttered the block of Park Avenue South between East 28th and East 29th Streets, we dispatched photographer Will Femia to survey the scene. Above, his panorama of the destruction.
About Racked
Racked is a blog about shopping, neighborhood stores and the retail scene of New York City. If they'll take your money, we'll tell you about it. More About Racked...
Tipping Is The New Black
Have you a juicy bit of shopping intel? Email Racked
Comments
City planners are so totally over all the bank branches that have been popping up around the city of late. So they've decided to do something about the trend. According to City Room, when they sat down to discuss the 
Once in a while, we pull letters from the Racked Inbox and post them for your enjoyment and/or enlightenment. Want to contribute? We're 
