The original M.Schames & Son paint store building, a fixture on lower Essex Street for generations, is now only a memory.
The business, one of the oldest on the Lower East Side, relocated to Delancey Street years ago, after the demolition of a neighboring building destabilized 3 Essex Street, where the paint store had operated for decades. In 2024, a new owner purchased both 3 and 5 Essex Street for about $5.3 million. Demolition of 3 Essex is now complete, meaning the two parcels across from Seward Park are primed for redevelopment.
Parts of the building are believed to have dated back to the early 1800s. Several years ago, we walked through 3 Essex. On the first floor, large wood beams (put into place in the days before the paint store relocated) jutted out from the northern wall. The upper floors had not been occupied since the 1940s when a fire swept through the building, which at one time served as a boarding house.
The old Schames sign above the front doorway has thankfully been saved. In a social media post a couple of months ago, the New York Sign Museum reported:
“These colorful letters sat right across from Seward Park and make up what many tell us is their favorite NYC sign. Although the business relocated to Delancey Street in 2010, the sign remained on Essex because it was too large to fit on top of their new storefront. While we all sometimes wish our streets would stay stuck in time forever, we are extremely honored and relieved to have this piece of New York City history in our collection and active sign shop, where we plan to repair the piece with metal reinforcements and remounting broken letters. With the building being slated for demolition, both signs came down last Friday and our team was able to go save it. The building owner kept the porcelain Dutch Boy sign, but agreed to donate the PAINTS sign to the museum.”
The new ownership of 3-5 Essex St. is listed in public records as, “Paint Store LLC” with a mailing address at the offices of Building Equity Management, a firm that manages many properties across the city. New building permits have not yet been filed.
