2008 Woodie Awards
Late Night Snack Stop Closed Down
Alan Kleinerman
Issue date: 8/31/05 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
Toffy's Dry Cleaning, Time Out, the phone card store. These merchants who occupy the small strip mall on Amsterdam Avenue between 186th St. and 187th St have been staples on the Wilf Campus for ages. Now though, a Yeshiva landmark is no more - the row of stores frequented by university students has a noticeable hole. The shop commonly referred to as 'The Bodega' was closed down on August 4 by New York Marshal Edward F. Guida. Yuderka Beltre, the former tenant of 2543 Amsterdam was evicted by landowner Nussbaum Assoc. Co LLC on account of the tenants, "Simply not paying their rent."
College students making late night food runs, a common practice at Yeshiva University, will have one less option. They will now have to suffice with Golan Heights and The Kosher Stop for their late night splurges. Joshua Nankin (YC '07), a frequent visitor of the bodega, was shocked when told about the closing. "Where will I go to buy my apple juice?" was all that he could say in stunned disbelief. "Not everything can be purchased at the establishments we have on campus," Michael Goldsmith (YC '07) related. "The bodega was the only place that I could find a decent (kosher) deli sandwich in Washington Heights."
Students all over Yeshiva will be echoing these sentiments when they return to campus on August 31st for the fall semester.
Aside from providing the students of Yeshiva with a convenient place to purchase food, the bodega created a source of competition for its neighboring shop and fellow convenient store, The Kosher Stop. Although it only serves kosher food, The Kosher Stop caters to a similar crowd and the two had competed for customers. Competition always creates a better market for buyers and keeps stores performing at their best. For this reason alone, the bodega will be sorely missed.
Now that it has been closed down, the question of what to do with the property must be raised. The landlords, Nussbaum Assoc. Co LLC stated that, "The operators of the bodega are no longer tenants and certainly will not be returning." The bodega's return has been ruled out, at least for now. There is a remote possibility that Yeshiva University will assume control of the space. With the store front now left vacant, along with the small piece of property adjacent to it that has laid dormant for an extended period of time, there is much potential for growth on the block. One can only hope that the new tenants, like the bodega once did, will cater to the university crowd and provide services to enhance campus life.
College students making late night food runs, a common practice at Yeshiva University, will have one less option. They will now have to suffice with Golan Heights and The Kosher Stop for their late night splurges. Joshua Nankin (YC '07), a frequent visitor of the bodega, was shocked when told about the closing. "Where will I go to buy my apple juice?" was all that he could say in stunned disbelief. "Not everything can be purchased at the establishments we have on campus," Michael Goldsmith (YC '07) related. "The bodega was the only place that I could find a decent (kosher) deli sandwich in Washington Heights."
Students all over Yeshiva will be echoing these sentiments when they return to campus on August 31st for the fall semester.
Aside from providing the students of Yeshiva with a convenient place to purchase food, the bodega created a source of competition for its neighboring shop and fellow convenient store, The Kosher Stop. Although it only serves kosher food, The Kosher Stop caters to a similar crowd and the two had competed for customers. Competition always creates a better market for buyers and keeps stores performing at their best. For this reason alone, the bodega will be sorely missed.
Now that it has been closed down, the question of what to do with the property must be raised. The landlords, Nussbaum Assoc. Co LLC stated that, "The operators of the bodega are no longer tenants and certainly will not be returning." The bodega's return has been ruled out, at least for now. There is a remote possibility that Yeshiva University will assume control of the space. With the store front now left vacant, along with the small piece of property adjacent to it that has laid dormant for an extended period of time, there is much potential for growth on the block. One can only hope that the new tenants, like the bodega once did, will cater to the university crowd and provide services to enhance campus life.