Some Upper East Side Neighbors Not Happy About Rumored Apple Store
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- An Apple Store is rumored to be set to open on the Upper East Side, and the thought of the potential new neighbor has residents divided.
As CBS2's Tracee Carrasco reported, the bright lights of the Apple Store across town on the Upper West Side are hard to miss. And some Upper East Side residents are worried about those same bright lights popping up in the old U.S. Mortgage and Trust Company building at 74th Street and Madison Avenue.
"It's not something that I think anybody wants to have in their neighborhood," one man said.
Some residents have been petitioning against the store coming in, saying it will bring even more traffic, crowds, late-night hours, and long lines taking over the sidewalks every time a new product launches.
"If it was going to create congestion, I would rather that we didn't have an Apple Store there," a woman said.
"There's not enough market, I don't believe, in this neighborhood for an Apple Store," the man continued. "It's obviously meant to attract from a wider neighborhood."
There are also concerns that a big retailer will ruin the quaint neighborhood – already lined with small, local stores that mostly close up early.
"It will change the complexion of the neighborhood," the man said.
But others disagree, and dismissed the idea that the neighborhood has a "quaint look" at all.
"What look?" said neighbor Charlie Smith. "I mean, we've got a museum that just left; we had a few jewelry shops that randomly get robbed."
Some said change is just part of life in the Big Apple, and if that change involves an Apple Store, so be it.
"We are living in New York City and development happens everywhere, and we have to get used to it or move to the country," a woman said.
CBS2 reached out to Apple about the potential new store location, but did not hear back.
