Brooklyn sees large number of stores in peril

Brooklyn leads the outer boroughs in the rapid disappearance of stores, according to a new study by Rep. Anthony Weiner.

In the wake of the passage of the federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which provides new funding for small businesses, Weiner’s office canvassed 5,991 stores in Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island to assess the health of locally owned businesses. Working with local business improvement districts to complete the survey, Weiner’s office found that 726 outer-borough stores, or 12.1 percent, were closed or in the process of closing.

Brooklyn led the pack, the study found, with 347 of 2,458 stores surveyed closed or in the process of closing, for a vacancy rate of 14.1 percent. Queens followed with 211 of 1,730 stores closed, a vacancy rate of 12.2 percent, and Staten Island had 63 stores, or 9.7 percent, out of 647 surveyed. In the Bronx, 105 stores, or 9.1 percent of the 1,156 stores surveyed, were closed.

New York City has more than 200,000 small businesses, accounting for two-thirds of the city’s private sector jobs, Weiner’s office said. Of these, 96 percent have fewer than 50 employees.

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act aims to create or save more than 90,000 jobs in New York City. TRD