Large chunks of cement from the front of 95 Delancey (between Ludlow and Orchard) came crashing down around 1 a.m. this morning. Luckily, no injuries were reported but the Green Star Foods bodega, Lumber Liquidators and the DL night club have been closed and cordoned off with police tape, forcing pedestrians on their morning commute to walk in traffic on Delancey Street to get around the debris.
UPDATE 2:46 p.m. Additional reporting by Alex Gerald:
Andrew Rudansky, deputy press secretary for NYC Department of Buildings told us the incident happened around 1 a.m. and the DOB was called to the scene a short time later.
A representative from The DL nightclub says there was a jazz swing party going on when chunks of the facade fell, but the event was winding down and there were no party-goers outside.
Around 11 a.m., Atul Mehta, owner of Green Star Foods, was on a nearby bench with his family, waiting for the DOB to give the business the all clear.
Mehta says he’s thankful nobody was hurt by the falling concrete and hopes the grocery will be back in business by tonight.
The DOB issued a violation to the building owner for failure to maintain the property and posted a temporary vacate order for the first floor until the owner constructs a sidewalk shed to protect pedestrians. Until then, nobody is allowed into the three businesses affected: The DL restaurant and nightclub, Lumber Liquidators and Green Star Foods, a 24 hour deli grocery.
An NYPD officer at the scene said she also hopes for a speedy clean up. Pedestrians on Delancey will have to pass the building by walking into the street until the sidewalk shed is constructed and the debris are cleared.
