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Q&A
Discussion on DCAS management of commercial spaces and storefronts
1:00:13
ยท
120 sec
Council Member Gale A. Brewer inquires about DCAS-managed commercial spaces, particularly storefronts, and their current occupancy status. Commissioner Louis Molina provides updates on recent auctions and plans for leasing vacant spaces.
- DCAS recently conducted an online auction for three storefronts in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn
- Plans are underway to prepare and auction other vacant storefronts, including former Municipal Credit Union branch and Corte Cafe
- DCAS agrees to provide a list of empty storefronts under their management to the council
Gale A. Brewer
1:00:13
Thank you very much.
1:00:14
One question I have is just commercial space.
1:00:18
Not all of it is yours, but how much commercial space, not the I'm talking storefronts.
Louis Molina
1:00:26
Okay.
Gale A. Brewer
1:00:26
There's certainly a lot of them around here, the old modells, etcetera.
1:00:30
How much do you have?
1:00:31
How are you gonna be renting it, etcetera?
1:00:33
Because it does seem vacant.
1:00:35
And I get complaints generally about vacancy in terms of commercial space.
1:00:39
Mhmm.
1:00:39
And then when a city has it, it's even more complicated.
1:00:42
So I wanna get an update on how much commercial space you have and how much is unrented.
Louis Molina
1:00:46
Yeah.
1:00:46
So, we just recently had an auction of three storefronts, that went successfully well as we transitioned to an online auction website in order to conduct those auctions.
1:00:57
That auction just completed for those three sites in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, and we're in negotiations now with the one who won that.
1:01:03
As it relates to the storefronts that I think you're talking about the former municipal credit union branch as well as the the restaurant, the Corte Cafe that was next to it.
Gale A. Brewer
1:01:12
And the one at 280 Broadway too.
1:01:14
Yeah.
Louis Molina
1:01:15
Well, to the Corte Cafe and and and former MCU bank branch.
1:01:19
I've had meetings with my real estate team to sort of prep and prepare those storefronts for auction.
1:01:25
We're evaluating how we can maybe do things a little bit better from our moving to an online auction platform to make sure that we get we put ourselves in a position to get the most square footage possible dollar value for those sites as well.
1:01:38
I can follow-up with you on the Model site, that's a little bit different because it's managed by an outside entity who has oversees that building, but we can follow-up with you on that.
1:01:48
And I know you do see a lot of storefronts as you're walking in and around this sort of municipal sector.
1:01:53
We don't have control over all those storefronts.
Gale A. Brewer
1:01:55
Oh, I know.
Louis Molina
1:01:55
But But where we do, we are making efforts to get those lease auctions up.
Gale A. Brewer
1:01:59
Could you get a list of the chair of those that you are trying to lease or that those that you are empty that you are in the process
Louis Molina
1:02:07
How happily.
1:02:08
We could send you that.
Gale A. Brewer
1:02:08
Okay.
1:02:09
Because it it does it's it doesn't add to the streetscape.
1:02:11
It adds to challenges.