The Times Square Alliance and the Fashion Center Business Improvement District are holding court in the Port Authority transportation hub starting May 1st, Crain's reports, and they're inviting you to join them. The duo will lease 2,500-square-feet of ground-floor retail space, that has been vacant for 5 years, to emerging fashion designers and artists. Their talented tenants will have to cover some costs, of course, including electric and air conditioning, but the BID will cover the rent, which is just $1. The lease will last 6 months, but it's expected to be extended for a few years, and the BID president is hoping to eventually "bring in a local designer from TV’s Project Runway" (Kenley Penley?!). Tim Tompkins, president of the Times Square Alliance, says they "want people who haven’t thought about Eighth Avenue in a long time to take a fresh look at it and to recognize that there’s all this potential business." more ›

Get used to seeing empty retail space: Real estate brokers tell the NY Times "they expect store closings in the city to rise this year." Over the next weeks, retailers will determine how their fourth quarter (especially holiday period) sales were and many expect the "pace of store closings to pick up in February and March." The number of Manhattan retail leases fell 33%, comparing 4th quarter 2008 to 4th quarter 2007, and landlords have——started to lower rents, even on Madison Avenue and in SoHo. One broker explains, "Savvy landlords are keeping tenants in place, even if it means accepting a rent that they might feel is under market." So maybe there is hope for the mom-and-pop venues out there, like the Emerald Inn. more ›