Located next door to the Yorkville Post Office at the base of Ruppert Towers, Kings Pharmacy has served Upper East Side residents needs for 20 years filling complex compounded prescriptions. That comes to an end later this month when the small, independent pharmacy will close its doors permanently. Upper East Site has learned Kings Pharmacy has been priced out of its longtime space.
According to the manager of Kings Pharmacy, which opened in 2003 at 1619 Third Avenue, between East 90th and 91st Streets, the store’s rent was doubled by the company that manages the high-rise building, RY Management, forcing the pharmacy to close at the end of the month.
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RY Management — which is also in charge of Yorkville Towers and Knickerbocker Plaza within same complex — has a documented history jacking up apartment rents without warning or mercy, in some cases nearly doubling rents on residents of their residential buildings across New York City.
In this case, the space set to be vacated by Kings Pharmacy after two decades now has an asking price of $37,000 per month, according to a commercial real estate listing for the 3,700 square foot space.
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At the pharmacy on Monday, large signs posted outside advertised a blow-out 50% sale. Inside, shelves already showed signs of being ravaged by deal-hungry Upper East Siders. Toys are marked 75% off.
Employees will have the option to move to one of Kings Pharmacy’s other two locations in Brooklyn (‘Kings’ is a nod to the county name) following closure of the Upper East Side location, according to the manager.
The Upper East Side continues to hemorrhage pharmacies, with Rite Aid, Duane Reade and CVS all closing stores in the neighborhood last year.
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