A proliferation of 99-cent stores in the Woodhaven neighborhood in Queens has strangled the commercial offerings in the neighborhood. But can residents or the local business improvement district do anything about the trend?
"Woodhaven’s shopping area has 99 problems," writes Eric Jankiewikcz. "The neighborhood’s commercial district, which runs along Jamaica Avenue, is oversaturated with 99-cent stores…" Residents "compare the discount stores to weeds that kill off other businesses and leave the local economy in the dirt."
In response to the decade-long decline of commercial investment in the neighborhood, residents and the block association have been pushing the Jamaica Avenue Business Improvement District to do more to buck the 99-cent store trend. Some of the solutions posed by residents so far include "increasing the web presence of the BID and spending more money on marketing Jamaica Avenue to potential business owners," according to Jankiewikcz.
FULL STORY: 99-cent stores weaken economy in Woodhaven
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