As the final merchants and tenants move into the Columbus Square mixed-use development, some longtime residents say the avenue will never be the same.
“I’ve never seen this many people at Columbus in my life,” said Heather La Kor, a shopper at Michaels Arts & Crafts and a former resident of the area. “Is it good for the neighborhood? Yes. But it loses some sense of its authenticity.”
Last Thursday, a new Sephora opened its doors at 88 Columbus Ave., filling one of the few remaining commercial vacancies in the Columbus Square development, a residential and commercial complex between 97th and 100th streets and Columbus and Amsterdam avenues, which is nearly four years into construction.
Kelly Gedinsky of Winick Realty Group, the company in charge of leasing space to businesses in Columbus Square, said that a Duane Reade, Crumbs Bake Shop, and Modell’s Sporting Goods are scheduled to open up this summer. A Borders bookstore and a Chase bank are slated to open up in the fall, along with two private schools, the Solomon Schechter School and the Mandell School.
And of the five rental residential towers in the development, two are already open and about 85 percent full, according to Jeffrey Davis, general manager of the Columbus Square complex. The remaining three will be finished by the end of the year, Davis said, adding that the apartments still under construction have not been rented yet.
The entire east side of this stretch of Columbus Avenue, which will eventually house the Borders and the two schools, remains under construction. On the west side, the Whole Foods at 97th Street and Columbus sits next to a vacant space, with two more vacancies near 100th Street.
With empty storefronts filling with retailers and towers on the rise on Columbus Avenue, residents have mixed feelings about the street’s transformation from a once-quiet block with a diner and a supermarket, to a large outdoor shopping center.
At the new Sephora, some customers were excited not to have to head to 76th Street or Times Square to get their makeup fix.
“To me, it’s very convenient,” said Alida Glafals, a shopper at Sephora and a teacher at PS 75, which is located near the new complex. “I really think this neighborhood needed this.”
A manager at Sephora, who declined to give her name due to company policy, said that the makeup and beauty store opened to lines out the door on Thursday, partially as a result of a deal announced on Sephora’s website advertising free gift cards to the first 100 customers.
Gedinsky said the success of Sephora’s grand opening is indicative of the attractiveness of the new retail space.
“Rain or shine, there has been an enormous amount of traffic on the streets,” she said. Among the businesses already open at Columbus Square are TJ Maxx, Michaels, Bank of America, and Whole Foods.
For some, though, the increased traffic has changed the area for the worse.
“I’m only shopping here because it’s an emergency,” said Dan Pina, a longtime resident of 96th Street and a shopper at Whole Foods. “This whole place has really changed the neighborhood. It’s lost a neighborhood quality. ... I prefer the people in the mom-and-pop stores, and I like to know the owner.”
Pina said he also was not pleased with the new architecture. “The apartment buildings have no meaning in this neighborhood,” he said. “They’ve totally destroyed the look of this neighborhood.”
Despite his frustrations, Pina said he understands what he perceives to be a lack of resistance to the complex. “It’s a young neighborhood, and the people here have no time or interest to fight this.”
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