Lower East Side Overwhelmed By Gentrification: Report

LOWER EAST SIDE, NY — A Marshalls department store is set to open in a gleaming new condo building that dwarfs the Lower East Side institution Kat'z Deli. Locals who have long-feared gentrification stripping away the the neighborhood's character and gritty charm say the big box store is the final nail in the coffin, according to a report by the Daily News.

Marshalls is set to open on Oct. 4 and continues the push of big brands moving into the area traditionally dotted with mom-and-pop businesses.

Last month, Target opened a down-sized version of its stores in the Lower East Side and launched an East Village location in July with a now infamous mock CBGB awning and print outs of tenement buildings that had residents railing against the chain for commodifying the neighborhood's culture.

The area is known for its vibrant arts scene and as a haven for working-class immigrants, but in the last two decades has seen a boom of trendy shops and restaurants that have chipped away at the neighborhood's individuality. The changes are lamentable, but inevitable, said one long-time resident.

“I can appreciate convenience. But Second Ave. is no longer a place where an artist or immigrant can dream the American Dream,” Kerry Robinson, who has lived in the East Village since 1992, told the Daily News.

“I have watched big development move in — and I do believe in development since I manage three interior design showrooms — but there needs to be boundaries, limits, historical and ecological value in the neighborhoods we call New York,” she said.

Read the full Daily News story on gentrification in the Lower East Side here.

Photo courtesy of Andrew Burton/Getty Images