Sidewalk sheds, scaffolding costs NYC businesses thousands each month, study finds

NEW YORK - Scaffolding on the streets of New York City is a common sight. A new study finds it is costly, too. 

Mayor Eric Adams released a new study Wednesday finding sidewalk sheds and scaffolding cost Manhattan businesses thousands each month.

The study was conducted by New York City and Mastercard, and reveals that Mastercard holders spend $3,900-$9,500 less each month at businesses with sidewalk sheds. Restaurants and bars are the most impacted, reporting 3.5-9.7% decrease in weekly transaction in the six months that follow shed construction, according to the study. 

Adams said his administration and the City Council are working on legislation to improve oversight on shed construction and maintenance. The city says that, in the coming weeks, it plans to file more criminal court cases against property owners who have failed to make repairs to their buildings and kept sheds in place for years. 

"We bring back the beautification that's associated with this great city, not only here in Manhattan, but throughout our entire city. This is a problem that we're facing, and we are focused on getting shut down," Adams said. 

"It really affected business"

Cassidy's Pub owner Shamus McNulty says his business was hidden under scaffolding for eight years. 

"It really affected business, because your visibility from the street, just didn't have it," McNulty said. "We saw a 20-25% drop in sales after the scaffolding went up."

With the scaffolding finally taken down, and a new facade, the business is attracting customers again. 

"We're getting far more traffic from the side streets," McNulty said. "It's just going to improve business. You gotta clean it up." 

The scaffolding that was hiding McNulty's business for so long was finally broken down a few weeks ago as part of the city's "Get Sheds Down" program, aimed at making building owners complete repairs quickly so unsightly sidewalk sheds and scaffolding don't linger. 

Since launching the Get Sheds Down program, more than 170 miles of sidewalk sheds have come down from city streets.