Montague Starbucks Booking?

By on October 11, 2007 4:58 pm in News

Thanks to "lady montague" for pointing out this item from yesterday's Eagle:

Brooklyn Eagle: Street Beat: The second item, regarding Starbucks looking to get out of its lease on Montague Street in Brooklyn Heights, is a real shocker. As they are known for putting so much effort in demographic and foot traffic research when deciding where to open their stores, we are pressed to remember when one of these gems have closed. Ever? We are not sure how quiet they intend to be, but the lease, which has years to go on it, is on the market.

Given the fact that there's another Starbucks a few blocks away on Court Street this wouldn't be such a devastating blow for the neighborhood… or would it? 

Is it time for all Brooklyn Heights residents who hold Starbucks stock (Homer included) to dump it as a sign of protest? 

Discuss below. 

Photo: Cat in the Hat and Spidey storytime at Starbucks by Homer Fink

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  • Rudy

    The only reason I’ve ever gone into this Starbucks was to pee when hanging out on the promenade before I moved to the hood. So as far as I’m concerned, get rid of it. But I also hate Starbucks Coffee.

  • Teddy

    Not even Starbucks can survive the eatery curse of Montague St. That says a lot. Anyway, I’ve noticed that the Court St. location is doing better so this news isn’t a surprise to me. The only question is what will take its place ? Another chain store or something more interesting.

  • BH_Resident

    It would be a devastating blow if another Starbucks opened up here. Usually when I pass the Montague St. store during the day, I only see a tourist or two, and maybe a couple of older BH residents, probably reminiscing about the past when BH had some good nightlife (bars/clubs, good restaurants and brothels). I also believe the Montague St. location was run poorly compared to the Court St. store. It’s time to go.

  • http://www.dickswizzle.com Dick Swizzle

    Who cares?! Tazza, Tazza, Tazza is all I have to say. Screw that awful swill! Sorry for your stock Homer, but no tears here. Ok.. Maybe a little tear from my clown. And by clown I mean…

    XOXO
    Dick

  • http://www.jenyip.com/blog Jen

    I don’t particularly like Starbucks, but it is one of the only places in the neighborhood right now where you can go sit for a while and work and there is wi-fi (even though it is expensive). We need a place with plenty of seating, actual good coffee, and free wi-fi!

  • bhb reader

    wow … I’d save $5/day if it closed b/c I’m waaaay too lazy to trek over to Court Street :)

  • CJP

    I too am not a fan of Starbucks. I hate having to use Starbucks speak to buy a cup of coffee. Large, medium and small have stood the test of time so why the pretense of “tall” which I believe is small, and “grande” which I believe is medium.

    But while I’m not a patron my wife is and she loves the place. A reason I don’t go there is that is always seems busy and I can get in and out of Lassen quicker when all I want is a cup of coffee. I can’t imagine that Starbucks is trying to bail on a multi-year lease that was negotiated years ago. (And anyone remember when it was a Korean deli?)

    There maybe other reasons for threatening to tear up the lease, if the news report is correct: are there problems with the building, for instance? Another more realistic explanation is that Starbucks may really be considering bailing on the location but NOT the neighborhood. Could it be they’re moving to a larger space in the immediate area, possibly across the street to where Jennifer is or where Liberty travel used to be. (And again, this is sheer, absolute, speculation on my part. I have NOTHING to base this on, but just offer it as an explanation.)

    If that speculation is correct, and I stress it’s just speculation, it would make sense that Starbucks is trying to get out of its lease. Starbucks is a great neighbor, they fill a need in the neighborhood and they obviously have a lot of extremely loyal customers.

    I’m guessing they are extremely commited to Montague but maybe not in that location.

    If that explanation

  • mona

    i remember the korean market. and i wish it were still there. starbucks is a dump, and the coffee is swill.

  • JL

    The coffee and pastrys at Connecticut Muffin across the street are pretty good, so that is one current alternative (I don’t think they have Wi-fi), but do have a small seating area upstairs.

    Either way you slice it, it would still be a loss for Montague St., especially if it was due to high rent. Goodness, if Starbucks won’t pay, who will?

  • CJP

    Nah… Radio Shack was definitely a Chinese restaurant! And yes Cosi was a liquor store, and a good one.

  • nancy

    I wish that Cosi was still there, Hopefully we won’t get another mattress store.

  • GHB

    That Starbucks is always crowded on weekends. I’ll miss it because the little guy at Connecticut Muffin is so friggin’ nasty so I won’t go there anymore. Too bad a good independent coffee place can’t afford the space.

  • joe

    Too bad. It’s a good place to piss and to see who of the old timers who virtually live there (one guy brings tea bags and cookies from Key Food, pay 25 cents for hot water) remains among the living. How they make money is beyond me to fathom.

  • Pineapple

    Starbucks is a wonderful establishment. They generally pay higher rents for prime spaces and they are clean and friendly. I would much rather have a Starbucks anchoring a street than a mattress store. I generally feel that most of the businesses in the area fail because they are poorly conceived and run. I would agree that rents are high, but frankly, if I owned the land I would try to get as high a rent as possible. I often wonder how many people that complain about the heights not being what it once was do anything about it–like support the well run and good local shop/restaurants. I say bring a Starbucks to the Northern Heights. They can set up shop where Mike’s Kosher was. There are plenty of worse problems in the nabe than Starbucks!

  • http://http:www.myspace.com/billyreno Billy Reno

    What?! They’re not selling enough McCartney, Fogerty and Joni Mitchell CDs to stay open?! DAMN YOU LIMEWIRE!!

  • hannah

    i’d be sad if Sbux leaves. As much as it’s coffee isn’t the best out there, it’s strong and it’s tasty – and right on the way to the subway. Unless a Joe the Art of Coffee or another similar cafe with decent coffee comes in, there’s certainly nowhere else b/w montague/court and the water that makes good brew. Tazza is great but not as convenient (and certainly not in the AM).

  • rata

    For years I’ve gotten my after-gym, morning coffee at lassen.

    I love the smell of pastries in the morning… it smells like, victory.

  • Truth Williams

    Could a Starbucks be what’s really coming to the Uncommon Grounds space? Weren’t they supposed to be open by now? What’s really going on there?

  • bhb reader

    dunno, Truth, but I peeked inside yesterday & they has redone the entire place … wood panels, new fixtures, it’s crazy… and, still closed!

  • bklynred

    Sleepys is where the liquor store was (I think). Starbucks was the Korean deli and Radio Shack was a Chinese Restaurant.

  • GHB

    Starbucks would do great in the old Bagelady space across from the Clark Street station.

  • Jittery

    the whole scene on Court street is gross… I like my Starbucks on Montague… Each day starts with a quadruple-espresso and a venti coffee… that shit is like rocket fuel… gets me going…

  • JL

    No wonder you call yourself “jittery”. Perhaps you should exercise some restraint and go for the double-espresso.

  • lou

    Where is the listing for the lease for sale? How much were they paying?…if they cant make it, then who could???

  • bornhere

    The liquor store was where Sleepy’s (downstairs) is now. Starbucks is where the Korean produce market was, which was the (brief) site of Key Food’s meat department. Radio Shack was the Chinese restaurant, and if I could remember what was at the Bagel place ….

  • CJP

    And speaking of what used to be. Anyone remember the bar that was where Au Bon Gusto used to be? And vaguely and briefly, and I am 100 percent sure of this, for a 3 week period of so, wasn’t there an upstairs deli inside the Hallmark store. Seriously… I thought there was a deli/sandwich place in the upstairs at Hallmark. Can anyone confirm this?

    And back to the matter at hand. Suppose Starbucks were to move in the now vacant downstairs space at Montague and Clinton? How about that?

  • timebandit

    well folks, even though starbucks is the nasty stain of gentrification and yuppy-ism in the heights but lets face it if you want to sit down and enjoy a coffee ( i am not saying i like their coffee) or a paper or just meet someone for a quick word there is no other place, barring tazza where you can do it. so you are forced to go to starbucks, which yes is poorly run and it filthy but it’s the only choice, also they must load in a ton of money with all the coffee they sell, their lines are to the door sometimes. connecticut muffin is good too but the guys at the counter are pricks and the sitting area is usualy packed with kids and has stains one would rather not find out what they are.

    so conclusion………….either revamp starbucks to a first class establishment or open up a decent cafe with plenty of seating indoors and out. cafes are very important places for the social development of a neighborhood, our neighborhood doesn’t have that forum type space, where you can actually meet other people in neighborhood rather than tourists who see starbucks as a safe haven

  • joe

    I’ll miss it–much better than the sleepys or another bank or real estate office. I’m not a huge coffee drinker but I meet people there for social or work and also get some work there when I need to get out of the house. CT Muffin is terrible though I always wish it was better. I do notice people hang out at Star$$$ all day and don’t seem to buy anything. Maybe one of the reasons they are bailing?

  • Anonymous

    Wasn’t the Starbucks space once Key Food’s meat market (about 30 years ago)?

  • RUMORS

    WOW YOU ALL WASTE YOUR TIME WRITING ABOUT RUMORS THAT ARE JUST UNTRUE. UM….HAVE YOU EVER THOUGHT OF HELPING ANYONE IN NEED INSTEAD OF YOURSELF?

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