With his grinding machine fired up, Lev Smelyansky worked away on this latest order. He milled down a pair of boots to the exact length he was looking for.

“I just have to replace and put new heels, because it’s already wearing,” said Smelyansky, owner of Lev’s Shoe & Leather Repair on Central Avenue in Albany.

At the end of every job, Smelyansky finishes it off with a polish to give each pair a fresh look. He’s owned the shoe repair shop in Albany for 30 years.

Smelyansky picked up the trade growing up in Russia.

“Sometimes it’s younger people, sometimes it’s older people,” said Smelyansky, regarding his clientele. But in recent years, it’s getting more difficult for Smelyansky to stay in business.

At most, he estimates he’ll get a handful of orders a day, and as a result, he’s opened just two days a week now.

“I use this seldom because not much people wear this kind of shoes,” said Smelyansky, pointing to an old machine.

According to the city directory, there were more than 100 shoe repair shops in Albany in 1930. By 1960, that decreased to 47. That shrank to just 11 near the end of the century.

Today, Lev’s Shoe & Leather Repair appears to be the last one in the city.

“Lots of time when young people stop in, they ask me if I can do it, and I tell them, 'yes, I can.' They say. ‘oh, we don’t expect this is possible to fix,’” Smelyansky said.

He said nowadays, people usually just buy a new pair of shoes instead of repairing the damage. Then, there are times he said a new pair costs just as much as to fix it.

He knows it’s a dying industry.

A few years ago, Smelyansky tried to sell shoes, but it didn’t workout. He’s now in it until the end, hoping to stay open at least another five years before hanging up his shoes for good.

“Just make people happy,” Smelyansky said.