HUDSON HEIGHTS — It's the final chapter for a stationery shop planning to close its doors this summer after nearly four decades in the neighborhood, the owner said.
Amita Parikh, 59, opened the store at 812 W. 187th St. with her husband 38 years ago, manning the store alone after her husband began dealing with health issues a few years ago. She said they are now looking for someone to take over the five years left on their lease.
“We want to retire,” Parikh said. “The rents are so high now and business is not like it used to be. People don’t buy in the neighborhood.”
In addition to stationery, the shop sells magazines, newspapers, candy and lottery tickets. It doesn't have a name, save for rust-stained letters reading "Stationery Cigars" on the facade.
Parikh called the store her second home and said she has many loyal customers who come in each day.
When one woman recently stopped in and asked for a lottery ticket, Parikh set to work entering her numbers in the machine by heart.
“You see, this is how we are,” she said. “She doesn’t even have to tell me her numbers anymore. Everyone here is like family.”
Another customer who did not want to give her name said she has been coming to the store daily for 30 years.
“I told her, ‘You can’t close. You can’t leave,’” the woman said.
Parikh said that many of her customers are also sad that they will no longer be able to visit Tommy, the 20-pound cat who calls the shop home.
“People call him the mayor,” Parikh said, noting that customers often bring in little toys and treats for the feline. “Somebody even made a Christmas Card with his picture.”
Parikh said business has dropped off in the past few years while rents have continued to increase. Many newer residents shop Downtown near their jobs or order things online, she noted.
“I know people don’t want us to leave," she said, "but what else can we do?”
Colorina Kids in Fort George
A clothing shop that has served Uptown families for almost 50 years closed its doors late last month, locals and an employee said.
Colorina Kids at 1442 St. Nicholas Ave. opened in 1969, said a manager at the company’s nearby adult clothing store.
The manager, who did not want to give his name, said rising rents along the 181st Street commercial corridor were a factor in the closing, as was competition from other stores.
“A lot of malls have opened around us so it makes us kind of obsolete,” he said. “They’re fixing up the Port Authority at the bridge now to be a mall.”
The employee said that about a half-dozen other stores on 181st Street had closed within the past year.
“Plenty of people went under,” he said. “This past year was trouble.”
Alex Steak House in Washington Heights
Alex Steak House at 4311 Broadway shuttered this month after only a little more than a year-and-a-half in business.
While furniture was still visible through the restaurant’s large windows, a sign at the site notified customers that a deli would be coming to the space soon.
The steakhouse, formerly known as El Conde, reopened in September 2013 after an extensive renovation process.
Owner Alex Rodriguez appeared before Community Board 12 in October 2014 to apply to renew his liquor license.
Rodriguez did not immediately respond to a request for more information.
