MOSCOT Now Carries Helm Equities Leasing Signage

It’s a sight not seen onsite in eons. Last Thursday, new owner Helm Equities unveiled a triple-threat of leasing banners at 118 Orchard Street, the longtime home of MOSCOT since 1937. It’s the first overt visual street confirmation of the move to 108 Orchard since we broke news of the departure back in October. Following suit, the classic eyewear company also installed its own announcements – pithy posters on both sides of Delancey.

Of lesser attention, though, is the fact that budget newcomer Concourse is being forced from its seven-month perch. It’s currently amidst a fire-sale of inventory ahead of imminent closure.

Don’t be fooled by the advent of Helm leasing signage, though. The two-story MOSCOT building is likely still slated for the wrecking ball sometime in the near future. As previously revealed here, zoning documents indicate that the two parcels at the corner of Orchard Street were recently combined into one zoning lot. The owner apparently granted the developer “permanent, irrevocable and perpetual easement for light and air over entire parcel.” Yet the legalese is ambiguous – “demolish or renovate the existing building and construct a new building all on the developer land.”

And the Wall Street Journal confirms this demolition kernel of the story, noting that:

Helm Equities bought the building in June for $4.8 million with plans to redevelop a mixed-used building—ideally a flagship national retailer—said Helm owner David Escava.