N.Y.U. is on more than a few East Village residents' shit lists at the moment. Locals are pissed at the school because of rumblings that N.Y.U. is going to price the sort-of creepy Met Food on Second Avenue out of the neighborhood. The Villager reports that at a recent meeting N.Y.U. officials held about the school's long-term development plans, more than 60 riled-up neighbors attended because they were worried about losing the grocery store.
The concern here is that Met's lease is up for renewal, and Mike Schumacher, one of the men that have been running the East Village market for some 20 odd years, said that NYU wanted to triple the rent. "Waving placards saying, 'I shop at the Met supermarket,' neighbors said they depended on Met Food for reasonable prices and a store within walking — or wheelchair — distance from their homes." NYU has promised that even if Met has to go, they'll replace it with another grocery store, but some Villagers fear that that means a Whole Foods or something equally expensive. 'Met Food is a linchpin of our community,' said one neighbor." And what is N.Y.U., chopped liver?
· E. Village food fight pits N.Y.U. vs. grocery [Villager]
Photo via Jeremiah's Vanishing NY
