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Plaza Cleaners to Close Tomorrow
Friday, January 11, 2013 at 8:23AM 
Plaza Cleaners, the dry cleaner on Seventh Avenue between Union and Berkeley, will be closing tomorrow night. Many thanks to a tipster for sending along the news, which was confirmed by the shop's owner, who added that the closure is due to a new landlord who raised the rent considerably.
Plaza is a no-frills dry cleaner that also does wash and fold, tailoring, and delivery/pick up. I've always been a fan of their 70s-vintage wood-paneled walls, and their arched wooden doorway certainly goes back many years, possibly to the 1930s.
I'm pretty sure that the facade is landmarked (like the Subway/ former Leaf & Bean a couple doors down), so hopefully the next tenant will take good care of it.
Those who still have clothes there will have until 5 PM tomorrow to pick them up.
Photo via
Closing in Scoops, Storefronts
Reader Comments (22)
So sorry to see this institution go. The owners were extremely friendly and always had my clothes ready when promised. They will be sorely missed. I hope they find another location close by soon to set up shop again!!!
Any other suggestions nearby for good, reliable cleaners?
Not a lot of lead time on this announcement and odd mid-month timing. How are people supposed to know and/or pick up clothing on time? Are they calling all their customers? Making other arrangements for those who can't get there on 1 or 2 days notice?
@ Ben K. - Yes - they are calling their customers. I received a call from them last Friday so they offered plenty of lead time for picking up clothes...and they deliver, too.
Im sure theyre nice people but can one of a hundred dry cleaners in PS be called an "Institution"?
I have a washing machine.
Another long time store closing down, so sad. I hope the store front won't be empty for long.
Seriously, Jbob? One of a hundred cleaners? first of all, there are far from "a hundred cleaners" in the neighborhood. And secondly, this is probably one of the oldest and best ones around.
There are quite a few, let's be honest about that. I can think of at least five within a four block radius that I can choose from.
That's not a hundred, lol.
Anyway, I think the point here is that they were probably one of the first in the neighborhood and have been in business for so long.
Only a slight exaggeration- Yelp lists 80 dry cleaners in PS. I stand by my comments
Let's argue about the number of fucking dry cleaners in the neighborhood.
Any place someone has developed a relationship over the years with, which offers a level of convenience to them, is going to be a loss to them. I will pour some licka for those of you who frequented Plaza Cleaners.
I've used the place under Crunch, Golden Touch, for years. Can't imagine a better place. That would be my recommendation. Odds are, though, that, if you were using this place, you want something note five blocks away. Maybe that green place on 7th?
80? I have lived here for many years and cannot count 80 dry cleaners, can I get a list of those Jbob?
And, Brooklyn Brawler, VERY good points
@brooklynthruandthru: Interesting. We had clothes there that we picked up yesterday but only coincidentally. They have my phone number but never called. Seems like an imperfect system to me.
@ParkSlopePerson: Yelp lists 53 dry cleaners within one mile of whatever they define as the middle of Park Slope. There are two directly across the street from Plaza, another around the corner on Berkeley and another on 7th across Union St. There are two more I can think of off the top of my head on 7th between Carroll and Garfield. The area is certainly not lacking in places that do dry cleaning although I do think Plaza was among the more thorough.
Brooklyn Valet Cleaners across the street is fantastic!! I used to use Plaza Cleaners but found Brooklyn Valet to be 100 times better. Carlos, who is the face of the store, is so polite and efficient.
Thanks Ben K. I am really just busting chops. But, just because there are other dry cleaners doesn't lessen the loss of this one to some people.
I remember Plaza Cleaners from the 1970s when I lived in Park Slope. I wonder if the effing landlord has found another effing chain store to rent to.
We've been going there for over 30 years so it is a great loss to us. Third set of owners in that period.
New landlord doubled the rent. Hope he sits with an empty storefront for a year.
@Gene: No one who lives across the street from this place wants it to sit empty. It's bad enough we already have two giant empty storefronts on the west side of 7th Ave. on that block. We don't need more on the east side.
As a belated update, Plaza Cleaners had a bunch of garbage bags out front yesterday. I assume they just threw out everyone's clothing. That's pretty outrageous if you ask me.
@Ben K. Point well taken. Just irritation on my part, and I agree we want 7th Avenue full of bustling shops.
I used Plaza Cleaners for many years to store my wool/winter clothes during the summer. I had tried many dry cleaners for this--they did the best job without question. I think they did quality work there, which I don't find everywhere. I was dismayed that they were pushed out on such short notice--though yes it was an annoyance to have to pick up things that I had just dropped off. For the owners to lose this business after many years of serving the neighborhood is just very unfortunate. Does anyone know if they have reopened in another location or had planned to?
Thanks
The tree in the way is a big turnoff. How can you get noticed with that in the way?