FWDRE · Data Index
The Manhattan Storefront Truth Index
A monthly, dated read of Manhattan retail's actual state — openings pipeline, closures, churn — built from public records. Every number carries its evidence date. Where the evidence doesn't decide, we say so.
The headline board
The state of Manhattan's storefronts right now, computed live from the fused truth layer. Each figure below is a real count from public records — none is a projection.
The closure figure is a band, not a point: its floor counts only storefronts that cleared the verified-closed bar, its ceiling adds everything currently reading likely-closed. The truth sits inside — most likely above the floor, because closures are structurally undercounted. as of Aug 25, 2026
Churn leaderboard — corridors by closed-share
Manhattan's canonical retail corridors, ranked by the share of their status-carrying storefronts currently reading closed or likely-closed. The downtown-versus-uptown story tells itself.
| # | Corridor | Storefronts | Closed-share | 6-mo net |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | East Village | 2,017 | 19.3% | n/a |
| 2 | Financial District-Battery Park City | 1,245 | 18.6% | n/a |
| 3 | West Village | 1,537 | 17.4% | n/a |
| 4 | Upper East Side-Yorkville | 897 | 16.8% | n/a |
| 5 | Upper West Side-Manhattan Valley | 474 | 16.7% | n/a |
| 6 | East Midtown-Turtle Bay | 1,409 | 16.5% | n/a |
| 7 | SoHo-Little Italy-Hudson Square | 2,716 | 16.1% | n/a |
| 8 | Tribeca-Civic Center | 1,291 | 15.6% | n/a |
| 9 | Greenwich Village | 1,332 | 15.5% | n/a |
| 10 | Chinatown-Two Bridges | 1,142 | 15.3% | n/a |
Monthly net-transition history (the 6-mo column) is not yet published — that series is being built and will populate here rather than be estimated. Closed-share above is a live cross-section.
Closed-share = closed + likely-closed as a share of status-carrying storefronts in the corridor · as of Aug 25, 2026
The coming-soon pipeline
A pending liquor-license application is a storefront announcing itself before it opens. This is the openings pipeline the city is processing right now — the leading edge of what Manhattan retail becomes next.
90-day window ending Apr 2, 2026 — the freshest DOB filings we hold. This feed lags; the window is anchored to its vintage, not to today.
Pipeline counts reflect the SLA county filing for New York (Manhattan). A pending application is a signal of intent, not a guarantee of opening — some are withdrawn or denied. We show the count and its snapshot date; we do not project openings from it.
How to read these numbers
Every storefront on this page lives in one of three tiers, and the third keeps the other two honest. Verified-open means dated, current proof of operation on at least one axis. Verified-closed requires two or more independent sources agreeing, one of which is a direct observation — paper alone never kills a business here. Honestly-unknown is where the evidence is stale or conflicting, and we say so instead of guessing.
That is why closure is reported as a band, not a point. A single figure would flatter us; the band's floor counts only closures that cleared the two-source bar, its ceiling adds everything that merely looks closed. The error direction is known and disclosed — closures are undercounted, so the truth most likely sits above the floor.
Vintage lock. Counts may change as new evidence arrives; every figure on this page reflects records as of its printed date. A number here and a number in a report can differ — the later evidence date governs.
Sources — NYC Open Data (DOHMH, DCWP, DOB, 311, LL157) · NY State Liquor Authority · US Census / ACS · MTA · PLUTO · Overture Maps (ODbL / CDLA attribution) · Foursquare Open Source Places · OpenStreetMap contributors · Google (rented signal, input-only). FWDRE fuses public records into dated, confidence-banded reads. Figures are evidence-based estimates, not guarantees — verify before contractual reliance. Not an appraisal.
For journalists
This index is built to be cited. The figures are dated, sourced, and reproducible from public records — quote them, and tell us if you think one is wrong.
Preferred citation
“FWDRE Manhattan Storefront Truth Index, August 2026.”
Data questions, methodology detail, or a corridor cut you don't see here — hello@fwdre.com.
Every figure above is computed live from public records and carries its own as-of date · records as of Aug 25, 2026