NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — New York City's last Sears store is on its way to closing for good.
Signs plastered on the doors of the department store, which has been in business since 1932 on the corner of Beverley Road and Bedford Avenue in Flatbush, read "EVERYTHING MUST GO!" "HUGE INVENTORY BLOWOUT" and "NOTHING HELD BACK!"
The store is housed in a 100-foot Art Deco-style tower that still has the original Sears, Roebuck and Co. signage.
The building, which is nearly 90 years old, became a preserved historic landmark in 2012, who protects it from being demolished.
According to the publication The City, the store will be closing its doors on Nov. 24.
None of the signs posted on the store note its closing date, but online job listings for temp cashier positions do.
"We're going to miss it," said Marcia from Brooklyn as she walked out of the store Sunday with some pillows. She used to work at this location and said she's not surprised by the store's closing as it faces stiff competition from other department stores, like Burlington.
"You come and you see a building like this and you think, 'Once upon a time this was it.' They made these gorgeous big buildings so it is kind of something and it certainly does signify a real change," said one shopper, who came to the store to take pictures of the historic building.
"It was so beautiful and bittersweet to see now knowing that they are closing a victim of the online establishments and probably finished off by the pandemic," another shopper said.
While it's not clear what will move into the building, one Brooklyn resident said he's like to see a community center take over the corner.
"A big community center with a pool, a gym, basketball courts and stuff, afterschool programs, something like that, that would be nice. Because it would be huge and we would use it. Put something here for us. But they didn't come to ask us so it doesn't matter, right? They're going to do what they want to do. We're just going to come here and spend our money, that's what we're going to do," the man, named Anthony said.
The Kmart in the basement of the building is also set to close.
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