Reimagining the Former Germantown as New Cultural Haven

In 2019, when Jeremy Schaller turned down a real estate developer’s offer of $24 million dollars to buy the two low-rise buildings owned by Schaller & Weber, the famed butcher shop, he was making a commitment to continuing his family’s three-generation tradition of being a part of the Yorkville community. In 2022, Jeremy opened the eponymous, Jeremy’s, a cocktail bar, two doors down from the butcher shop, and Jeremy’s has been drawing crowds from the community and beyond and is ever-present on social media.

Revitalizing the 86th Street section of Yorkville has been a part of the conversation in the Yorkville/Upper East Side community for several years. Recently, while traversing the neighborhood zip code, I met Howard Teich. Howard’s been active in the civic life of the city for many years and he’s always a fount of knowledge and information. He told me of his interest in the re-making of all of 86th Street, from Carl Schurz Park to The Met on Fifth, into a cultural center and that he has been in discussion with Andrew Fine, who is Vice President of the East Side Association about the revitalization of 86th Street. He told me that Andrew said, referring to 86th Street around Second Avenue, that: “It’s really quite vibrant for the young crowd in terms of entertainment and doing things.”

Fine noted the continuing interest in and viability of the 86th Street corridor--the area between Lexington and Second Avenues--with H Mart, a wonderful Asian Market coming to 225 East 86th Street right across from Fairway, and Barnes & Noble opening on Third and 87th, replacing the now defunct Duane Reade. Fine described his vision as the “re-imagining” of 86th Street. And it sounded like a re-remembering of Yorkville as it was when it was an ethnic enclave of immigrants.

Today, in the mix of new and old businesses and banks in the 86th St corridor and environs are luxury condos and rentals that were built in the 1960s and beyond. There remain a few buildings--like The Manhattan just west of Second Ave, on the south side, built in 1920, and still standing at a mere six stories a few steps from the 25-tower Ventura, built in 1998. On the other side of the street, and just east of Second Avenue, is the 21-story Yorkshire Towers, built in 1964. The three are rentals. And stand amid a burgeoning of condo towers (maybe some rentals?) in all directions on 86th Street with names like The Harper, Haworth, Alyn, and Lucinda. All up and running and to be joined by Arlopark at 86th between Lex and Park.

Second Ave Subway, Ferry Pier a Boon to Area

Making the neighborhood a residential destination is easy. While it has always been convenient to public transportation--with the 4/5/6 express and local subway stations on Lexington Avenue; the MTA buses including the 86th St crosstown and M102/103 locals and M101 express. And now, there’s the Q stop on the Second Avenue Subway, and the ferry, a little ways uptown. But for movie houses, theater, other types of entertainment, as in days yore, that’s no more, except for the AMC on Third Avenue between 86/87th Streets.

Fine and Teich see 86th Street getting back to its Old Yorkville roots. In the early 1900s to probably the late 60s, the neighborhood was known primarily as Germantown. There were German and European restaurants and entertainment. Theaters/movie houses were a staple. An article in the New York Times, March 2, 1965 in describing the razing of a theater, said, “One of the best known landmarks in the Yorkville area of Manhattan--the Casino Theater on the south side of 86th Street between Second and Third Avenue--will be demolished to make way for an office building.” That “new” office building has the same address as the theater--210 East 86th and includes land that was not part of the theater site. The theater, which opened in 1934, is the oldest “art” motion picture house in the country and the only one that has show German language films continuously for 31 years. In the intervening years a movie theater was incorporated on the site. The last one, City Cinemas, closed several years ago and remains unoccupied.

Performing Arts to Replace Shut Down Movie Theater?

Enter Andrew Fine and Howard Teich both of whom are, in their words, “re-imagining” 86th Street Street - from The Met on Fifth Avenue to Carl Schurz Park on East End Avenue--as a cultural center by bringing back and revitalizing the neighborhood and remembering a time when the 86th Street corridor was filled with movie theaters and known as German Broadway. Fine and Teich envision a Performing Arts Center at the now-closed movie theater on East 86th and possibly having other storefront or building venues in the area for similar use. Wouldn’t be a bad idea to consider, if land-marking Papaya King, built in 1931, isn’t possible, to include the space in an overall building plan as a performing arts venue. Maybe making its memory part of a museum of local landmarks.