Rumored Smith St. McDonald's: Denials & Opposition

Naturally, people living in the vicinity of the rumored possible Smith Street McDonald's aren't greeting the possibility of McMuffins in their midst with warmth. A GL reader emails to say people are:

all aflutter over the possibility of a MickeyD's taking the place of the Brooklyn Camo. Someone called it a "tipping point" after it was pointed out that there was a Starbucks, a Dunkin' Donuts AND a Domino' Pizza directly across the street, not to mention the Brooklyn Industries and American Apparel, Lucky Brand Jeans, Rite Aid, CVS, Wamu....Then it spills into the sociology of the Gowanus & Wyckoff Housing projects, public schools, and how poor people shouldn't have to eat that food.

Of course, EVERYONE is thrilled about the Trader Joes, which will occupy the Amalgamated Bank Building, yet concerned about the future of Sahadis. One [person] did mention she hoped it affected the Sahadis, as she was "scared" of the "ethnic" food stores on that stretch of Atlantic.

Now, as it turns out, rumors of McDonald's and of the possible closure of the St. Claire Diner may not be true. We read an email that says:

I asked at the St.Claire Diner yesterday if they were moving. The very tall young-ish blonde behind the counter said that 'paperwork had changed hands but they weren't going anywhere'....'we'll still be here' True or not - that was her response. Then I asked in the real estate store on the corner of Wyckoff and the woman inside said they weren't moving and it wasn't true that McDonald's was coming to that space. She said that the Army/Navy store next door is renovating and not moving. So how did these 2 new urban myths begin?

Another email seems to confirm this:

I spoke to the real estate office on the corner of Smith and Wyckoff today where I was told that while McDonald's is always a threat, they had no plans to leave their current space for several years.

That's the rumored McDonald's site in the photo above, by the way. Of course, there is almost nothing left of the old Latino Smith Street, McDonald's not withstanding. The entire culture that used to thrive there--as recently as five or so years ago--has been erased.