Chocolate House Accused of Gentrification
February 20, 2015
Industry City, a complex of 16 buildings on the edge of Sunset Park in Brooklyn, NY, recently became the home to Manhattan’s oldest chocolate house, Li-Lac Chocolates. The chocolate shop now sits among wholesaler’s trucks, loading docks, laundry mats, and barber shops. Although its wrap around windows and chocolate aromas are most inviting, some were not enthused to welcome Li-Lac to the neighborhood in late 2014.
Prior to its grand opening, which attracted over 1,000 visitors, one resident of Sunset Park accused the event as “a celebration of gentrification”. Elizabeth Yeampierre is the executive director of Uprose, a Latino community organization in the area. She was expressing fears that this change may ruin the blue collar atmosphere in Sunset Park.
Sunset Park is one of the most diverse neighborhoods in Brooklyn. Beginning with Scandinavian roots, then Irish and Italian, then Puerto Rican and Mexican. Today, it is largely a Latino and Asian residency.
Co-owner of Li-Lac, Chris Taylor, said the idea of gentrification caught him off guard. “I got an email from someone in the community two days before the opening and thought it was a joke. It took me a few days to realize it was serious,” he said.
His surprise comes from the origins of the chocolate shop itself. “Our founder was an immigrant from Greece,” he said. “Two of the three current co-owners are immigrants.” Li-Lac’s master chocolatier, Anwar Khoder, emigrated from Lebanon nearly three decades ago and worked here initially as a taxi driver. Another owner, Anthony Cirone said, “We’re locals,” “We’re not an unknown corporate entity owned by unnamed people in faraway places.”
Of course, it is a matter of opinion whether this innocent chocolate shop would be the beginning of the end of Industry City, or whether its new makeover was inevitable. The fact is, Industry City is now undergoing a $100 million upgrade, according to NYTimes.com. The plan is that it will be transformed into an artisan friendly commercial space for artists and start-ups of all kinds. But, will the artists who live and work there currently be able to afford the rising cost of rent?
The buildings at Sunset Park, which fell victim to Hurricane Sandy sustained a reported $50 million in damages. In 2014, Jamestown Properties bought a 50 percent stake in the 16-building complex, and is investing $100 million to renovate the buildings, clean facades, and add modern utilities such as a food hall and elevators.
Jamestown is also seeking to fill the buildings with residents. The Nets basketball team may even be taking over part of the complex with new practice courts and training rooms, but that has yet to be set in stone. Jamestown has also sought help from local non-profits to match people with jobs within Industry City.
With all of these goings-on, some artists are happy with the improvements that have been made, even though there is much complaint over rising costs. For others, unfortunately, they are forced to relocate to more budget-friendly spaces.
Photo: "Brooklyn Bridge New York City" by Martin is licensed under CC BY 2.0 / cropped from original
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