Vinnie's Pizzeria: a model for changing neighborhoods
This is about a Williamsburg establishment, but I use it since I have no good Greenpoint one just yet.
Let me go on the record as saying that our house hates Anna Maria's Pizzeria on 7th and Bedford. Hates it. Last possible destination for pizza, ever. Too greasy, for one, but for two - the guys that work there are horrible. Rude, imperious, slow. I know that their customer base consists of individuals who are, for the most part, rude, obnoxious and demanding, but not all of them are. If you don't want to serve the local population then move somewhere else.
On the other hand, further down Bedford between 8th and 9th is Vinnie's. Better pizza. Less people. People who work there are human. Vinnie's, however, had a major strike against it: they closed at an hour unspeakably early for the Bedford corridor - 8 or 9 pm.
Things started looking up for Vinnie's earlier this year when they installed an ATM that only charged 99 cents. And then, one day, the boyfriend came home and said, "Someone new is working at Vinnie's." How did he know this? Signage indicating NEW LATE HOURS! VEGAN FRIENDLY! BE CREATIVE IN YOUR TOPPINGS! The later hours - not 3am, just midnight - meant that Vinnie's is a realistic dinnertime or post-concert alternative for us, as well as for the hundreds of people who get off the L train and walk down Bedford to go home. The people for whom dinnertime is not 5pm, or 6pm, but 7, 8, 9pm (or later). People who also likely despise Anna Maria's, and once they find an alternative, won't patronize them ever again.
Now, Vinnie's is still Vinnie's. Locals who came in for their tray of lasagne for a family event can still get all of that. And if you act like a jerk, they'll treat you like one. They didn't need to stop being Vinnie's. But with a small adjustment, the business can still be viable, and make that Bedford Ave. rent. More importantly, a member of the neighborhood will still be able to stick around, instead of being driven out.
And I won't even go on a rant about how ludicrous it is that you can't get pizza after 8pm in Greenpoint.