It’s tough times for the Bowery’s lighting district, according to The Wall Street Journal. Gentrification and slack sales have led to a rash of closures. In 2000 there were some 30 stores in the area — now there are just 20, with another two closures planned soon. An officer of the Lower East Side Business Improvement District told the paper, “Nowadays, there are a lot more options, everything from the Internet to Home Depot.” Internet. We hear ya, buddy.
But it wasn’t always this way. We’d like to remember the lighting district as it once was in this 30-second David Letterman segment from 1983. Enjoy.
