WEST VILLAGE — A source of nuts and bolts for West Village residents for the past three-quarters of a century will soon take its hardware elsewhere.
Blaustein Paint & Hardware, which has been open for business on increasingly chic Bleecker Street for 76 years, will move to Greenwich Avenue in June after the rent on its space tripled, owner Dimitry Lerner said Monday.
Lerner, who bought the shop from the Blaustein family 30 years ago, said he took the move from 304 Bleecker St. to 51 Greenwich Ave. — the former home of longtime movie store World of Video — in stride.
"It's business. It's the market," he said, declining to speak about the new amount of rent asked for his longtime Bleecker Street space. "What can you do?"
Blaustein Paint & Hardware will have more room on Greenwich Avenue — with a total of 1,500 square feet, compared to 1,200 square feet on Bleecker Street.
A March listing for the World of Video space suggested that the building owner had envisioned handbags there, not hardware.
An online ad by real estate firm Bernard-Charles, Inc. said the space was available for "high-end boutique use only."
Village resident Christina Zomopoulos said she welcomed the useful new addition to the block, which is home to a mix of new and old shops and restaurants, including Starstruck Vintage Clothing, which opened in 1980, and the hipster throwback barbershop Moustache, which opened in 2008.
"I'm happy because if I need something, it's close," Zomopoulos said.
Maggie Griffin, a co-owner of Partners & Crime Mystery Booksellers across the street from the future hardware store, said the neighborhood doesn't need more clothing shops.
"I'm happier to see a hardware store there than a high-end retailer," she said.
City Department of Finance records show that 304 Bleecker Trevi LLC bought the entire building on Bleecker Street, which has three residential units on its upper floors, for $5.75 million in March.
A representative for the company did not immediately respond to an inquiry about the space.
