TODAY IN LOST CAUSES: Delusional Man Files Lawsuit To Stop The Madison Avenue Apple Store

Well, you can't please everybody.
Since it was discovered that an Apple Store was opening on the corner of Madison Avenue and 74th Street, (pictured at right under construction) a group of neighborhood residents has been protesting that new establishment would destroy the genteel character of the neighborhood and create disruptive lines with the company's periodic product launches. Last week, 89-year-old Herbert Feinberg, a longtime neighborhood resident and the leader of this NIMBY protest, filed suit in Manhattan Supreme Court to prevent the store's opening which is scheduled for this Saturday, June 13th. Court papers state, "Madison Avenue is one of the great New York City Streets ... (and local residents) are opposed to the congestion and commercialization of the neighborhood that the store will bring,” as the suit attempts to prosecute complaints about the upcoming store such as the "massive increase in pedestrian traffic" it is expected to bring. According to Feinberg, the neighborhood is only meant for small luxury boutiques and galleries. Despite the measurable drop in traffic since the Whitney Museum at Madison and 75th decamped for the Meatpacking District, The Metropolitan Museum of Art which is planning to make use of the building in the coming months, is expected to make up the shortfall with even larger crowds. The suit also refers to the over 400 signatures Mr. Feinberg has collected to block the store as the leader of group called "Saving the 74th Street Residential Neighborhood." Of course, it has been widely reported that merchants on Madison Avenue above 72nd Street are suffering from the drop in traffic since the Whitney's departure, and are actually hoping that the Apple Store will do exactly what Mr. Feinberg is predicting it will in bringing shoppers to the area. 
According to the Daily News, Mr. Feinberg has taken it upon himself to personally file suit because the city officials responsible for such zoning issues had ignored his pleas to save the neighborhood from this retailing scourge, which would actually suggest that they are ignoring frivolous and unreasonable complaints, hopefully in favor of dealing with more pressing issues. Though The Shophound is not a legal expert, it is hard for us to imagine that any judge not dismissing this case outright , especially since Apple claims to have specifically conceived the store to be in keeping with the neighborhood's hours and character and no actual laws or zoning rules appear to have been violated. It doesn't seem like this will end well for Mr. Feinberg who is likely to have accomplished no more than confirming the stereotype of Upper East Siders as self centered snobs.

Upper East Siders seeing red over new Apple Store opening in neighborhood (NYDailyNews via Gothamist)