Wankel's Hardware Reportedly Closing After 125 Years In Business

UPPER EAST SIDE, NY — The days are numbered for one of Yorkville's oldest businesses: Wankel's Hardware is closing its doors after 125 years, according to reports and real estate brokers.

The family-run store was founded in 1896 on Third Avenue between East 88th and 89th streets, steps away from the elevated subway line that ran through the neighborhood at the time. Like many others in Yorkville, founders Bernhart and Elizabeth Wankel, were of German ancestry, and sold largely farm equipment in what was then a rural community.

Having owned the building since its inception, Wankel's became a neighborhood fixture for its reliable stock of housewares, paints, building supplies and other household needs.

Last October, however, real estate brokers Cushman & Wakefield announced that the Wankel's building at 1571-1573 Third Ave. had been put up for sale. While Wankel's owners declined to comment at the time, a spokesperson for Cushman & Wakefield confirmed to Patch that the hardware store would eventually close.

Now, that day has apparently come: East Side Feed reported Thursday that the store would close by Friday evening, with items on store shelves being sold at steep discounts.

No one answered the store's phone Friday morning.

Still, city records indicate the building has not yet been sold, with a listing still advertising an asking price of $10.4 million for the property — consisting of two contiguous five-story buildings, with 20 combined apartments above the retail space.

No large development would be likely to replace the Wankel's building, since its air rights have already been sold, according to brokers. Some of the building's tenants have relocated since the planned sale was announced, while others have remained in place, according to Jayden Lapin-Tatman, a Cushman & Wakefield spokesperson.

Besides its products, Wankel's was also known for its long-running practice of hiring refugees to staff its store.