« Big Plans for Red Hook's 'Graffiti Park'? Cat Man Plans Grocery at Myrtle Project »
May 29, 2008
LeNell's Days Are Numbered
LeNell Smothers, owner of the eponymous wine and spirit shop in Red Hook, has been searching for a new space for her beloved store since last summer. Unfortunately — for LeNell and for all of her fans across the borough — her lease is about to run out and she's still got nowhere to go.
In a note to the shop's mailing list (which wasn't published online), LeNell explains that her current landlord, who apparently works for Baluchi's, won't renew her lease because he is planning to open his own business in the space. (No official word on whether he's planning on opening another branch of the Indian chainlet.) LeNell says that she had a draft lease for the vacant lot next to Good Fork, but it fell through this week. One of the owners of the lot is Red Hook developer Greg O'Connell, who owns the Fairway building, among many other properties. LeNell writes:
"We had architectural drawings, had agreed on basic lease points, and I've been thinking all along that we were just finalizing details. The space included the store on the first floor and the bar on the second. After discussing this project for nearly a year now, I get a visit from Greg recently telling me that he has just realized constructions costs will be more than he wants to pay. He won't entertain thoughts of my partnering in building out the space. Just flat out pulled out at the last moment...which happens to be a few days before the end of my current lease. I'm in shock."
The second space LeNell was considering won't work out, either, as her landlord wants her to sign a five-year lease, and she's looking for a ten-year commitment. At the moment, LeNell's is covered in plastic sheeting, due to a leak that the landlord isn't interested in fixing, but there's still time to stop by. The lease is officially up this month, but in LeNell's words, "I know it will take months for a formal eviction should it come to that."
Photo by jasminepark
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.brownstoner.com/mte/mt-tb.cgi/5036
Comments
And?
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 10:08 AM
Clearly a frustated business person, but threatening to drive to eviciting proceedings in a public article isn't going to help with the new landlord search.
I would suggest leaving Red Hook. Move to the area near Gowanus/Greenwood where it's just as industrial, but much closer to me, and cheaper.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 10:10 AM
it's nice to know that the beloved LeNell will make her problem the landlord's problem. Too bad for her but this is the worst kind of BS.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 10:11 AM
So much for the moratorium. Can we at least have parity in coverage - for every hipster-oriented piece, can you cover something that's not so trendy in community? For example, this Sunday at 12:00 pm is Visitation Church’s annual BBQ in Coffey Park. How about showing the Roman Catholics some love?
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 10:21 AM
That's terrible news, hopefully it will result in the store moving to a more accessible location.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 10:25 AM
10:21 its a real estate blog.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 10:26 AM
LeNell, come on out to Bushwick honey. We've got plenty of cheap space and love to booze it up.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 10:30 AM
"How about showing the Roman Catholics some love?"
You have William Donohue for that.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 10:31 AM
I don't even know what to say... I actually gasped a little when I read the piece, and then felt utterly heart sick when I read the first three responses to it.
What is wrong with you people? I suppose on a very base level, you are right, but where is the heart? Where is the anger at the good faith year-long gentleman's agreement being meaningless in the eyes of Greg O'Connell, earning ENORMOUS amounts of money with his Fairway? While the agreement meant everything to the proprietor of this tiny, beloved store, which was one of the bedrocks of Red Hook's renaissance?
Red Hook is being peeled apart layer by layer as the long time residents and people who love it sit and sadly watch the once sleepy, utterly unique environs change before their eyes at warp speed.
I know so many of you will respond with something akin to "cry me a river", and I guess I'll say to you, Okay. I will. And part of that is in realizing how few seem to care at all. Simply saying let the forces of development and capitalism burst forth in whatever form it wishes.
But maybe I just like bourbon. And I'm biased. I also like wildly different, interesting, quiet, strangely artful, weedy, weird and beautifully urban areas too much.
This little patch of New York City simply couldn't last. And I had hoped it would.
Now bring on the giant garden gnome in the Monet that is Ikea. But I don't think I can watch.
Posted by: Nokilissa at May 29, 2008 10:47 AM
nokilissa,
Neighborhoods are built around lower crime, good transit and better schools, not wine stores. Did you really think Red Hook would remain some bohemian hermitage?
Also, there are plenty of long term residents that do not share in your vision to preserve a decaying quasi-industrial playland for hipsters and their artsy, fartsy friends.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 11:23 AM
This is a fine illustration of how brownstoner.com squeezes a story to fit the mold of "evil magnate vs. small businessperson". By aligning the enermy with Fairway and a restaurant chain, this post attempts to paint the wine store owner as a hapless victim.
I can't believe for a second that in a place like Red Hook, where unoccupied storefronts abound, Ms. Smothers cannot find another space. I seriously doubt that this is the end for her. In six months, she will likely be resettled, probably less than a block away from her current location.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 11:25 AM
I feel for her, but it's always a bad idea to think of any arrangement as a "done deal" without putting it in writing. Without a contract, things can always fall apart.
Posted by: Carol Gardens at May 29, 2008 11:25 AM
come to north side of prospect heights on washington ave. alot of new places opening and tons of empty store fronts for rent. alot of artist and other people.
Posted by: armchairwarrior at May 29, 2008 11:25 AM
Well put guest 11:23.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 11:45 AM
You should have printed the whole letter, which goes into detail about how atrocious the landlord is being to all the tenants in the building. Also though there are empty storefronts, part of the problem is that the landlords won't grant a 10 year lease--this is not unusual time span for a commercial lease--and LeNell's already been burned once by the short lease she had on the current place. Couple that with the issues surrounding transferring her liquor license and it's a nightmare. There's much more to this story. But as usual Brownstoner reports the minimum of facts and presents them in a light that will get angry chatter going on the boards to up their site traffic.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 11:46 AM
Uh, isn't a five-year lease better than no lease?
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 11:48 AM
there are more than enough liquor stores in Prospect Heights
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 11:48 AM
The situation she is in sucks but it is not the fault of the owner of her current space who wants to open his own business. However, she is opting to burn her current landlord because a different landlord burned her. This isn't right.
She should pack up and vacate the space when her lease ends. It sucks if she doesn't have somewhere else to go right away but if she stays beyond her lease and forces eviction then I have no sympathy for her.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 12:09 PM
Now, now, 11:48, PH (and any other neighborhood) could always use a few more liquor stores!
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 12:13 PM
"Now bring on the giant garden gnome in the Monet that is Ikea."
I think a more accurate metaphor might be, "Now bring on the giant Smurf in the Kienholz..."
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 12:44 PM
this is just a biz transaction - not a metaphor for a changing neighborhood. she sounds dumb.
i own a small biz, and we are constantly talking about where to move to next, and that's not for a couple of years!
find another space. big deal.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 12:48 PM
She is a miserable person who wants everybody to cater to her needs. Have you ever caught her on a bad day? She makes you feel as if she is doing you a favor selling you her beloved whiskey. No wonder her husband left her.
Do us a favor - please move back down south.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 12:53 PM
As an RH resident and someone with passing knowledge of the situation and its players, I feel obliged to speak up and say that Lenell's is a neighborhood institution that is fiercely loved, and I'm appalled (not suprised; appalled) and bummed out that its owner has been so badly treated. Who knows what O'Connell's side of the story is (though it is true that money doesn't really seem like the issue for him). It would be a tragedy to lose the shop's homey, low-key presence in the hood. That this coincides with the opening of the big blue monolith is coincidental but somehow apt.
We love you Lenell! Don't give up hope!
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 1:04 PM
She signed a lease. The lease is ending. Move on.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 1:05 PM
NOOOOOOO!!!!!!! More sadness hits Red Hook. If only it could be frozen in time, but it is doomed to be overrun with mediocre Indian Food and disposable furniture. I love the rare and delicious whiskies! Don't go, LeNell!
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 1:30 PM
My wife is from Alabama and anytime that she has interacted with Lenell, she says that the latter deliberately exaggerates her southern drawl for dramatic effect.
There are plenty of empty places in the area and, if this business goes under, plenty of other liquor stores around to serve you. If you have a car, drive to BH. If not, shop elsewhere and ride the bus home. no big deal.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 1:51 PM
Um. Mr. or Mrs. anonymous coward posting at 12:53. This is her "ex-husband" as you would like to call me. Before you go spouting your mouth...
1) If you don't like shopping there, don't
2) No one "left" anyone. We're still best friends, just not together anymore.
I suppose ranting and raving without knowing any of the details is fine when you can hide behind your computer.
As for "it's just a biz transaction", it's not easy to move a bar or liquor store. Licensing is mess in NYC right now.
Red Hook has been a place where you could work on handshakes, sure it's better to have things in writing, but one of the things that has attracted people to this neighborhood is that it's a bit of a big family.
I love the fact that the article failed to mention how when the ceiling came down, folks from the neighborhood came in and lent a hand and gave the landlord a hard time.
As for eviction proceedings, she is not planning on stiffing the landlord rent. She's been an ideal tenant and gone up and beyond to try to take care of the building, more so than the landlord ever has.
Also missing from the original post was this "When you come in and I'm dazed, bitchy beyond normal, on the phone like a lunatic, please don't take it personally. Everything I've worked so hard for is hanging in the gallows.", don't forget we're talking about people's lives and dreams here. She puts it all out there, which is more than most folks are willing to do.
Posted by: bpeikes at May 29, 2008 2:05 PM
1:04 PM,
Re: "Lenell's is neighborhood institution that is fiercely loved"
Give me a break! Did you move to RH two days ago? The annual fish fry at Sonny's, Visitation Church, the VFW Hall, the latino food vendors in Red Hook Park, the pool, old timers' day in Coffey Park, the waterfront barge and Miss Perry, a retired PS 15 kindergarten teacher are beloved neighborhood institutions. Lenell is hardly in that league. Plus, the joint went down hill once she hired that long haired blonde dude.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 2:15 PM
It's a fine shop, if you like whiskey (which I don't). I feel like LeNell's opened up like 3 years ago. It was definitely not 5 years ago.
Further, the place was never so special in my mind it deserved schlepping on the bus or paying $20 for a car to take me out there. Retail in Red Hook has always been painted in this david and goliath light, but the problem - as with all retail - is population density.
The vast majority of Red Hook residents live in the projects. I've pretty thoroughly checked out the neighborhood on my bike, and I'd estimate that at most - the population of people who make above $50K is probably in the hundreds. Maybe 1,000 people. That is just not enough of a population to support these bars, restaurants, and a whiskey shop.
Posted by: Polemicist at May 29, 2008 2:18 PM
Sad news. A great store. As some here have indicated, LeNell herself can be a bit ornery, but that doesn't take away from the fact that the store is a treasure that enriches Red Hook and the City. I plan to buy as much product there as I can afford before the place disappears.
Posted by: Brooks of Sheffieild at May 29, 2008 2:19 PM
This thread is reaching a new low, even for Brownstoner.com.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 2:27 PM
Polemicist, you are, as usual, talking out of your ass. Just because you "feel" like she hasn't been there 5 years, does that make it true? And as a Red Hook resident with an income of well over 50K, I'd LOVE to know what your searing eye thought of my property and what you estimated my worth to be. The neighborhood is already teeming with people on the weekends, plenty of business for everyone.
Posted by: mshook at May 29, 2008 2:31 PM
I can't believe Polemicist doesn't like whiskey. I knew there was something wrong with him.
Posted by: Karka at May 29, 2008 2:42 PM
That place is the best liquor store I've ever been to...full of style & character, not to mention interesting booze. Obviously a labor of love. LaNell deserves respect, not to mention a storefront. Terrible news...a major loss/bad omen for Red Hook.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 3:02 PM
bitter renter
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 3:12 PM
LeNell's is by far the best liquor store in the city, and I regularly take the hour-plus ride on the B61 from Queens to go there. I find interesting things every time I go there, most of which are utterly unavailable at the larger shops.
Are LeNell and her store quirky? Sure. She's certainly not a blow-dried, plastic, personality-free automaton like you'd find at Ikea (or in Park Slope, or at Astor Spirits), but I've always found her cheerful, supremely knowledgeable, and generous as hell. If the bitchiness in this thread is representative of the cattiness of her neighbors, (the ones I know all love the store), I hope she moves to Astoria...for purely selfish reasons.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 3:15 PM
Everything in the store is overpriced by 20% at least.
Nothing is handed to anybody - and she comes across as if people owe her something because she owns this "unique" shop in Red Hook.
If she a nice person I am sure people would be less apt to "leave her in shock".
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 3:27 PM
The store has been around for 3 or 4 years and it is an institution? She signs a short commercial lease and everyone should feel sorry for her. You would think she was running a non-profit homeless shelter. She certainly gets a lot of pr. We know she is 37 and owns a house in RH that she bought for 360k a couple of years ago. Why not sell it and buy a building on Van Brunt or rent one of the many empty store fronts. She was negotiating with one person to rent and at the same time with another to build her a building. Please.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 3:28 PM
As a gentrifying Red Hook resident, I view any closing of any of our shops to be a bad omen for the neighborhoods. We have too little as it is and we just can't seem to retain solid businesses.
I was never a fan of Pioneer Bar, but it was nice to know it was there. This new Brooklyn Ice House doesn't seem like it will be a big hit.
Hope & Anchor is sub-par, Bait & Tackle is unwelcoming, Sunny's is never open, Rocky Sullivan's is far away, 360 is closed, The Good Fork is hard to get into, Tini is overpriced and won't last given that they get about four people in there a night. Those cutesy little antique jewelry and fancy soap shops aren't gonna last. Baked has lousy coffee and slow service. So, what do we have left? A neighborhood with a big box store and a mediocre supermarket with water on one side and projects on the other.
LeNell isn't the nicest person in the world, but her store has character and a good selection.
Time to move to a real neighborhood.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 3:45 PM
3:15, better than Crush, 67, Acker Merrall & Condit, Sherry-Lehmann, etc? Really? Then I'm sorry I missed it.
3:28 is right, buy a building. That's how most small businesses survive long-term. If they live there, sell the house, buy a commercial building, live upstairs.
Posted by: denton at May 29, 2008 3:57 PM
3:35 PM
You are either John McGettrick or on crack if you're calling Fairway mediocre.
As a non-gentifying member of the RH community (I live in the house my parents purchased in 1958), I concur - it's time for you to move.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 4:53 PM
It's a great store and we love Red Hook so that's not my problem, but this is - the landlord says he wants to open one of his own Baluchi restaurants there sometime in the near future. Which is why he doesn't want to give a long lease.
That's his right. It's HIS building.
You don't want to ever get kicked out or priced out you gotta buy a building too. Otherwise no matter where you are you are in danger of the landlord one day deciding he wants to take his own space back for his own business. Lenell's outrage and huge sense of entitlement in this search for space for her store kind of confirms everything everybody is saying about this woman being nutty. Also as someone pointed out, Lenell was only trying to renew her lease after the other deal fell through for her. Why should the landlord feel this loyalty to her, then?
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 7:19 PM
Stay classy, Brownstoner commenters.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 8:53 PM
i just read all these comments. it's impressive how the brave, anonymous guests expressed the most hateful, vitriolic comments, some of which are perfectly despicable. look, it's a great liquor store. they have lovely mailer postcards, excellent tastings, and lenell is a nice person. i suppose some people just enjoy other people's misery, and that cannot be helped and i am sure the people who made the hateful comments have much bigger problems than commenting on blogs. brownstoner was simply trying to raise awareness. but everyone's got an opinion, and it's very easy to pontificate anonymously, isn't it?
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 8:57 PM
Not for nothing but Greg O'Connell has done an enormous amount for red Hook, including saving and salvaging many old buildings and reusing them for artists. He has done a lot of community you won't hear about and was one of the first to care about preserving as much of red Hook as possible while making it a viable neighborhood in hard times. He wasn't born rich either- he worked hard for what he got (I believe he was a police officer but I'm not totally sure)and built up his holdings bit by bit. He also bought old manufacturing buildings and converted them to aprtments for middle and moderate income people.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 9:31 PM
Doesn't make any sense. The tenant willingly signed a short term lease, now they are upset because the lease is up and they have to move? A lease is a legal agreement that spells out what each party is entitled to. Did the tenant not understand that when the lease was up the landlord had no obligation to sign another lease?
There's plenty of vacant storefronts in red hook. The story makes no sense whatsoever. And threatening to force eviction? I would never rent to such a tenant. I hope every landlord in red hook reads this and refuses to rent to her.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 10:38 PM
Brownstoner you do a huge disservice to Greg O'Connell by reporting just the tenant's side of the story. You just look bad in the process.
Posted by: guest at May 29, 2008 10:42 PM
Speaking of vacant retail space...why doesn't she just move down to Court Street, where the pedestrian traffic could better support her business in any event.
I recently counted 10-12 empty storefronts, some of them sitting there a very, very long time.
As for me, I get Sherry-Lehman to ship for free. A lot simpler.
Posted by: guest at May 30, 2008 12:34 AM
Get off the high horse, 8:57. LeNell asked Brownstoner for this story to be covered here. So let's get this straight, she wants to tell her side of the story but not Greg O'Connell's, AND on top of it none of are allowed to have an opinion. After we've been ASKED for our opinions.
Posted by: guest at May 30, 2008 1:05 AM
mshook: I have to say, your post has to be one of the more amusing attempts at insulting me I have read on this site for a while. Like many Brownstoner posters and readers, you seem ignorant of facts - some of which are quite easy to find.
In regards to the length of time LeNell's has existed - I gave you a clue that I am uncertain, thus it is very much unjustified you would suggest I am "talking out of my ass". Since casual conversational style doesn't work for you, let me explain how this works. When one is uncertain of facts, it is a common colloquial expression to state you "feel" that a specific fact is true. I may very well be wrong, and I let you know this by using that word!
As for the retail commentary, I work in commercial real estate. While you may not understand how market analysis works, that simply means you're an idiot and clearly don't make your high income in any economics related field. LeNell's is a neighborhood establishment. Red Hook is not a viable destination neighborhood, and thus the only safe bet can be the vast majority of shoppers will come from the neighborhood. I can also tell you that that the $50K estimate is pretty well established as far as surveys go regarding a minimum income that allows for purchasing luxury vices like overpriced hard liquor.
There is plenty of public information available from the US census bureau to find out 2006 income estimates for the tracts found in Red Hook. Adjust the estimate with data you gather regarding new, market rate construction and voila - you have your answer regarding the total.
In my case my bicycle surveys of new construction, while admittedly not scientific, formed the basis of my adjustment to the census estimate.
It is true I don't typically post precisely how I get to my estimates and projections, as lot of the data is proprietary or in some cases confidential, but retail market analysis is simple enough anyone can do it. Seriously, how dumb can you be to think someone would estimate a local retail market population based on looking at the exterior of your house?
Anyway, I've met LeNell - she seems like a fine woman. I just don't think she made a wise decision opening up in Red Hook. Sucks, but it's true.
Posted by: Polemicist at May 30, 2008 4:27 AM
For being a "not viable destination neighborhood" we sure have a lot of people coming to visit, on weekends in particular. You are dribbling opinions regarding an area about which you admit you know next to nothing. When you met Lenell (and I'm sure it was a thrill for her) did you ask her how her business was doing? Clearly well enough that someone else wants to use her space for their own.
Posted by: mshook at May 30, 2008 7:08 AM
The space is not hers. She was leasing the space, and the lease is ending.
Posted by: guest at May 30, 2008 9:07 AM
I don't know if Greg O is interested in telling his side of the story, but I hope he will, as her version puts him in a bad light. As to why she would not just move down to Court Street, probably because we have many excellent wine and liquor stores here already. Not as specialized as LeNell's, though. But competition (Smith and Vine, Scotto's, Heights, etc.)
I think that it is probably tough to keep a business going on that Red Hook Strip, just as there have been challenges to the establishments on Columbia. Yes, there are weekend visitors, especially in nicer weather, but just not consistent foot traffic weekdays and over the winter months.
Posted by: Carol Gardens at May 30, 2008 9:55 AM
I'm wondering why people are talking about "keeping a business going", when what we are obviously talking about it a viable business losing its lease. Trashing the area, saying it can't support these shops, is silly when the whole point is she HAS a viable business, just nowhere to put it.
Posted by: guest at May 30, 2008 10:36 AM
Here is another interesting blog about Lenell. http://www.brooklynian.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=36897&sid=49566d24f0780bcecf855e0079972e35
As a small business person, it makes me sick that she would do this to a LL. She makes business tougher for all of us. Greg O. was wise to pull the rug out from under her. It saved him dearly in the long run.
I also heard her husband left her...I think everyone pretty much saw that coming.
Posted by: guest at May 30, 2008 10:54 AM
hey 12:44- peyo is Belgian. How about- bring on the big blue and yellow furniture retailer at the place where little house meet the big projects?
Posted by: guest at May 30, 2008 1:36 PM
10:54, careful now, you're close to sounding like an idiot.
And every time someone says something like "We can all see why her husband left her", they are trafficking in latent sexism. Period.
Oh, and take a look at earlier post by the ex of whom you speak. Feeling good about yourself?
And Polemicist, we regularly drive or ride bikes out to Red Hook and frequently stop in at LeNell's. we also take friends and family out when visiting. Everyone always loves it and friends and my dad have been seriously impressed by her hard to find selection.
Her business is more than viable.
Posted by: Nokilissa at May 30, 2008 2:42 PM
Her business is not viable. It is dead. Cant do business if you don't have a place to conduct it. She hopefully will be dragged out by the sheriffs sooner than later.
Posted by: guest at June 2, 2008 7:24 PM
personally, I find Lenells pretentious, and the staff unfriendly, unless you want to spent $100 on a bottle of bourbon. I go down the street to the ghetto store and buy my booze through bullet proof glass. Lots of whining going on lately.. the store isnt all that. I would love a Baluchis to come in. get over it, its progress.
Posted by: guest at June 29, 2008 9:01 PM
That "charming" southern accent gets a little old. She is not a nice person, and neither is her staff. I agree with the above comment. I dont see her as an institution... please. Go back SOUTH.
Posted by: guest at June 30, 2008 3:05 PM
Latest Restaurant Additions
-
Bridgeview Diner
added February 9, 2010 12:00 PM in Bay Ridge -
222 Franklin Street
added February 8, 2010 12:00 PM in Greenpoint -
La Petite Provence
added February 5, 2010 12:00 PM in Carroll Gardens -
Purple Yam
added February 4, 2010 12:00 PM in Ditmas Park -
Kasia's Restaurant
added February 3, 2010 12:00 PM in Williamsburg -
myThai
added February 2, 2010 12:00 PM in Bay Ridge -
Vinnie's Pizzeria
added February 1, 2010 12:00 PM in Greenpoint, Williamsburg -
Vesuvio
added January 29, 2010 12:00 PM in Bay Ridge -
Sue Perette
added January 28, 2010 12:00 PM in Carroll Gardens -
Radegast Hall & Biergarten
added January 27, 2010 12:00 PM in Williamsburg
Post a comment
Please be patient while your comment is published. It may take a moment.