Urgent-care facilities have been cropping up across in the city in spaces long occupied by retailers.
The clinics, which serve as an alternative to a doctor’s office or emergency room, are making up for the diminishing presence of other commercial sectors. The owner of 345-347 Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn plans to replace five retail tenants with a single 3,500-square-foot office for CityMD.
CityMD, the biggest urgent-care chain, has undergone a major expansion so far this year. Centers have opened in Boerum Hill, Bay Ridge and Astoria. The chain also inked a lease for 7,200 square feet at Riverdale Center in the Bronx.
“I believe strongly that the density level and the growth in income level really attracted them,” Joe Farkas of Metropolitan Realty Associates told the Wall Street Journal. “The combination of medical use with retail these days is very prominent.”
Most retail landlords are happy to sign the clinics, while others feel it presents a more upscale image. [WSJ] — Mark Maurer