by Ann Votaw, CHES, MA, Inwood Resident

After Tuesday night’s three-alarm fire, the building on 4945 Broadway, at the corner of West 207th Street and Broadway, is slated for demolition. Meanwhile, neighboring stores on the block are already noticing less foot traffic, even though they will remain open.

“Not too many people are walking around,” said Jeff Mansour, manager of Alejandro Furniture. “There’s already less foot traffic.”

Today was unseasonably warm with a high of 58 degrees. Despite the sunny weather, Mansour said that fewer customers were looking at the furniture displayed outside, probably deterred by scaffolding.

“This is usually much busier,” Mansour said. “A lot of people didn’t even know there was a fire.”

Customers leaving K & R Florists – which will not be torn down – said, “Well, I’m glad they’re still here,” even though the shop is beside the demolition site and surrounded by barriers.