"Jail-with-retail"

Katherine pointed me to this article about the possible reopening of the Brooklyn jail. Among the possible tenants sharing space with a reopened Boerum Hill jail? A children's clothing store, an upscale food market, or a boutique hotel. Meanwhile, the proprietors of bail-bond establishments are now looking forward to newly increased business.

New York is short on space. Discount department store Century 21, only steps from the WTC site, seems to flourish. Housing projects and upscale shops and restaurants are neighbors in several locations, from Chelsea to the East Village to Boerum Hill. But a fancy supermarket in a prison? Cute little stores? It seems odd enough that these things are all over the borough as it is, or at least would surprise many Manhattanites. I can kind of see stores and whatnot functioning just fine in a jail, precisely because New Yorkers are used to tiny spaces. But re: a boutique hotel--will people really spend a lot to sleep in a prison building? I'm not seeing it.