After serving the Park Slope community for decades, Steve’s 9th Street Supermarket between 5th and 6th avenues, shuttered permanently on Sept. 30 with little notice to the community.
News of the abrupt closure of the supermarket sparked concerns among Park Slope residents, who worried the shop might be replaced with luxury housing, leaving them without a local affordable grocery store. At a packed community meeting at the Park Slope Public Library on Sept. 30, Assembly Member Robert Carroll and Council Member Shahana Hanif addressed community concerns about the future of the now-vacant commercial spot, the loss of accessible and affordable grocery options, and rumors of high-rise condos and air rights.
The neighborhood fixture had been a lifeline for many community members due to its affordability and accessibility, particularly for families and customers with disabilities, as it was one of the few supermarkets in the area with aisles wide enough to accommodate wheelchairs and strollers.
Both lawmakers acknowledged that addressing the need for an accessible and affordable supermarket in the neighborhood was a top priority, but also dispelled speculation that the building, which dates back to 1913 and housed the historic Prospect Theatre until its closure in 1967, was being sold to make room for a luxury development.
Hanif said there is currently no evidence that the property had been sold.
“As far as we know, I have not seen any zoning application that would make me think that the owners are trying to change the zoning; change from commercial to residential,” Hanif noted. “I checked today as well to see if the owners filed anything. Nothing yet. Steve’s is a commercial zoning. So if they were to sell and change the zoning, it would come to the City cCuncil.”
Hanif told the crowd that, based on conversations she had with store employees, sales had declined significantly, and the supermarket owner was behind on rent.
Despite efforts to find an amicable solution, the landlords, Michael and Phil Schreiber, who, according to Buzzfile, operate as Charles J Management, which also operates under the name Royal Farms, proved to be uncooperative. They allegedly also raised the rent by an “exorbitant” amount when it was time to renew the lease. Hanif’s office reached out to the landlords in mid-September, but had yet to receive a response. Michael and Philip Schreiber did not immediately return Brooklyn Paper’s request for comment.
“The need for an accessible, affordable supermarket is the top priority,” Hanif emphasized. “So if Steve’s can no longer be Steve’s, whatever takes its place has to be an affordable supermarket.”
Carroll also noted the need for affordable grocery stores for Park Slope’s working and middle-class residents.
“We do not need to have ultra high-end grocery stores or other ultra high-end convenience stores,” Carroll said. “We cannot allow for local neighborhood affordable grocery stores to be priced out for highly, either expensive luxury grocery stores or to serve a very narrow interest, which is what they tried to do in Windsor Terrace.”
Attendees suggested that supermarket chains like Wegman’s or Trader Joe’s could be a viable replacement. However, Carroll and Hanif noted that as elected officials, they didn’t have any leverage over what should happen to the vacant space, but highlighted the importance of community organizing to ensure that Steve’s was replaced with an affordable grocery store.
“As legislative bodies, we can’t force a private owner to do anything. We could get in a lot of trouble for that, and we certainly don’t want to jeopardize the leverage we might have by bringing in the community to put larger political pressure on the owner,” Hanif said.
Carroll recalled how Windsor Terrace residents mobilized when the local Key Food abruptly closed in 2012 to make room for a Walgreens. Vowing to boycott Walgreens, and after months of rallies and petitions, neighbors reached a compromise, and the building was modified to accommodate Key Food.
“There are certain private things that [landlords] can do, whether we like it or not. However, as a community, we can make it very clear what we would like,” said Carroll, highlighting the importance of organizing to make clear to the landlord what the community wants. “The reason [Windsor Terrace residents] got that was not because they had any legal right to have a supermarket. It was that the landlord and the owner of that property realized what they were intending to do would possibly go over like a lead balloon, and realized that they needed to show that they were responsive to neighbors.”
Julie Baron, a longtime Park Slope resident who organized the community meeting after learning that Steve’s 9th Street Market was closing, told the Brooklyn Paper that she would love to see a full-service, affordable supermarket take over the space.
“My kids would be overjoyed if it were a Trader Joe’s,” Baron said. “[But] I am someone who makes my own yogurt. I make all of my own bread. I’m agnostic about what goes in there. I just want it to serve our community, and that means being physically accessible to people of all levels of mobility and all levels of economic status. I really just want the best possible supermarket for everybody who lives in Park Slope.”
Park Slope resident Jean, who asked to be identified by first name only, told Brooklyn Paper that Steve’s closing was devastating for middle-class families, seniors, and people with mobility issues.
“It’s an increasing problem that neighborhoods are becoming unaffordable, and it’s not just the rents, it’s the stores that the people rely on,” Jean pointed out.
Madge Koch pointed out that Steve’s was one of the only unionized supermarkets in the neighborhood.
“The staff is wonderful, and I hope, with whatever comes into that space, that they give extra consideration to those employees,” Koch said.
