102 North End Avenue Battery Park City

Hello Goldman Sachs — Goodbye NYSC and others

102 North End Avenue Battery Park City
Hello Goldman! Goodbye New York Sports Club and others

We have Goldman Sachs to thank for using the Independence Day weekend to free us from the conveniences of our local gym and other stores some Battery Park City residents have grown to love.

Our newest corporate neighbor and owner of 102 North End Avenue has not offered renewal leases for some local restaurants and businesses including Applebees, New York Sports Club, Pizzabola, and Chevy’s among others. The landlord is cleaning house and also shuttering the Embassy Suites hotel to make way for The Conrad, a luxury Hilton Hotel brand.

The introduction of this new hotel will also lead the way for new restaurants and retail stores. While some are glad to see a change for more upscale dining options in our neighborhood, others — including committee members of Community Board #1 — decry it, saying it doesn’t serve the mixed income interests of the community. Whether we love these places are not is still yet to be seen. One thing is for certain — the sudden lack of services and possible construction impediments will affect our neighborhood almost immediately.

Although there isn’t much that residents can do to about the end of Chevy’s and Applebees beyond renting a car and heading to the ‘burbs, one of the most immediate pitfalls in this “landscape transition” is losing the New York Sports Club. Although several of our buildings have our own gyms — the NYSC was still the neighborhood’s largest and most robust fitness center. Leaving newly orphaned NYSC members with the question: “Where do we go now?!”

Some official answers have been left for local residents on the Town Sports, Inc. website:

“All Battery Park City members now have Passport privileges allowing unlimited access to all clubs across the Sports Clubs Networks.” Whether or not you have subscribed as a passport member before.

Other New York Sports Clubs within walking distance of Battery Park City are:

NYSC Tribeca at Reade Street
151 Reade Street

NYSC City Hall
217 Broadway

NYSC Wall Street
30 Wall Street

For anyone who has specific questions towards their membership, New York Sports Club is requesting you call BPC’s NYSC management team at (212) 945-3535.

Although this is a short term solution for patrons of the BPC’s NYSC, one cannot help but feel a bit helpless. Goldman Sachs has always had powerful control over our local restaurants and services, which affect the overall landscape of our neighborhood. As long as they are mindful of residential needs — it will be nice to see some fresh retail and restaurant blood in the neighborhood. Especially if it remotely involves a Shake Shack.

About Lizbeth

Elizabeth has been a resident of Battery Park City since 1985, where she and her sister were beneficiaries of the neighborhood's first school bus stop. She loves to travel, but loves even more to come home. The Battery Park Esplanade is her favorite neighborhood fixture, where you'll often find her soaking up the sun, rollerblading, or simply enjoying the view.