Eastdale: “Hallmark” Town
Eastdale Village: a vibrant community where business owners and residents alike thrive amidst a unique blend of location, aesthetic charm, and a strong sense of community. This quaint village offers a plethora of benefits for those who choose to call it home or establish their businesses here. From its strategic location to its picturesque surroundings and tight-knit community spirit, Eastdale Village beckons entrepreneurs and residents seeking not just a place to live or work but a true sense of belonging and opportunity.
Featuring more than 400 luxury rental apartments and 120,000 square feet of restaurant, retail, and medical space, Eastdale is truly a unique village whose planning and design set a new standard for mixed-use living.
Claudio Cruz, 31, founder of SKYE STUDIO, a hair salon on Eastdale Avenue, described her business experience as accommodating and positive from the beginning.
When asked from a business perspective what amenities or features of Eastdale Village she believes are most appealing to residents and visitors, Cruz explained that anything new and different will naturally raise different opinions among people. However, from her business standpoint, she sees it as a new style
“A set town center is what they call it,” explained Cruz. “ It’s just a different style, so for me, it fits my business and how innovative and new and modern it is. But then obviously there’s cons, people could say that they love it here because it feels like a movie set and then some people may say, ‘oh, the fake little town,’ but it’s just different views.”
As far as rules and regulations, Cruz explained that because she was one of the first businesses to open, she wasn’t very limited and was able to pick everything from scratch. She picked her square footage and the building, and when they asked her what she wanted the outside to look like, they did want her and Chakra Bowls to be sister buildings.
“So, that’s why we’re identical. I’m friends with Lauren from Chakra Bowls, so it kind of made it easy, like we were like, okay, what color do you want the outside to be? We picked it. It was easy to pick. They kind of just laid it out, and we just had to pick,” said Cruz.
Cruz refers to they as the Kirchhoff Companies, a real estate developer firm, and that’s who she met with. According to Cruz, she had designers, architects, and assistants helping her throughout the process, making things ten times easier.
“It was nice to have that and at no cost. For me, opening a business, just to have my blueprint and layout and just like give ideas based on my Pinterest board…but they were able to, like, translate into what’s real, you know,” said Cruz.
For Debbie, a sales associate at Daffodils Gift Shoppe, Eastdale is like a big community and a big family where everybody helps each other out, “It’s almost like a village,” she said. Debbie said that it all comes down to the community when asked what opportunities exist for businesses on Eastdale Avenue to engage with residents and visitors through events, promotions, or other collaborative efforts.
“Due to the community, we have Marist College here, as well as Vassar, and moving forward, so you’re having people from all over the area, students with families from all over out of state. So, you get a bigger array because of that,” said Debbie.
According to her, one of the great benefits of Eastdale is that there is no competition.
“Well, obviously, people that are coming here are being handpicked, so the developer is choosing who comes in here and who does not. In other words, you don’t want five gift stores, so there’s no competition,” said Debbie.
Brie, the store supervisor at Freddy B, a clothing and accessories boutique, believes, along with Debbie and Cruz, that a sense of community is crucial for driving Eastdale Village’s success.
“You know, the whole point to them building this space was to really start to foster a whole local business, shopping, small and like bringing people to the area to create this whole community,” said Brie. “Every day, it’s like we have our regulars who come in, but also people who have never been here. It’s like a little town.”
When asked what she thought of Eastdale being perceived as almost like a movie set, Brie said, “At first it was a little, you know, plastic, but it almost feels like you’re romanticizing your life when you walk around.”
Brie thinks that Eastdale Avenue is definitely a very strategized space. Eastdale offers an array of opportunities with the greatest benefit being the front stores, “I think they wanted not just the people who were coming for the day, but for people who were moving into… have a little life here, you know, a lifestyle, a little lifestyle,” said Brie.
