Merchants and community board officials in Sunnyside have declared war on Queens Blvd. street vendors.
Their weapon of choice: cops.
The “zero-tolerance” campaign to purge the corridor of street sellers is spurring outrage from licensed peddlers, who say their livelihood is being squeezed.
“The cops arbitrarily questioned me and confiscated my merchandise,” said Ronald Moore, who recently spent a night in jail after police arrested him as he sold sweaters on the corner of 46th St. and Queens Blvd.
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The vendors give me the SQUIRTS!!!!!!!!!
is there anything sunnysideposthatesme likes? this miserable, forever suffering dweebs act is getting old.
The people here who insist everyone patronize the mom and pop stores are the same morons who complain about these b&ms paying exorbitant rents (and in some cases laundering money, haha)…
In the end it’s all our yuppies’ fault I suppose…
I loved getting chicken over rice at that halal truck at 46th. I never got sick once. In fact, I get food from those carts in manhattan often also and have never gotten sick from them. Those guys do work in shifts and I do see them leave the trucks for what I assume are bathroom breaks. The only thing I would agree with is that if there is a reasonable way to satisfy health violations (add a little sink, use climate controlled trucks to deliver the food, etc), then make the adjustments and come back and leave them alone. All this about supporting local mom and pop stores, well problem is they are expensive.
The fruit guy used to sell almost-rotten fruit cheaply. He didn’t maintain a hygenic station, and he didn’t care for the area, he was a fly-by-night merchant. You should patronize your local grocer who contributes to the neighborhood, by paying proerty tax and putting down roots.
About time someone takes this action.
They are unsanitary (yes they sometimes wear gloves which they don’t take off between serving food and counting money; think about how/where they go to piss), they are not cheap (if this is your concern), they clog sidewalk (there’s a reason it’s called sidewalk), most of them don’t pay tax, they kill local mom-and-pop business … and the list goes on …
I miss fruit guy.i don’t understand community they don’t want to vendor in Sunnyside.they don’t know how is the price infresh save market.crazy thhink.right now I can’t eat fruit and vegetable enough.community love the big market they love the store.cominity they don’t respect hard working people.
40th st is a MAZE now, you have to walk around that shitty art and around the shitty food.
being that halal food is prepared under the appvl of the great allah you would think that halal would have higher standards, apparently a man living in a filthy rolling metal box for 10 hours with no sink is good enough! when the man sneezes where does it go? a nice coating for your lamb kabob.
they put up the workout art under 40th station, i need the space for my squats and push ups. im hopin for a towel rack and water cooler
s.s.m.
Everyone has a right to make a honest living.
Curiously Jimmy VB hasn’t addressed his constituents in quite some time aside from the carefully orchestrated ribbon cuttings and press releases in the Woodside Herald.
I’ve eaten at that 46th street Halal cart for years and have never gotten sick. They use gloves and prepare the food in a sanitary manner. Also, they go to the bathroom just like everyone else, there is a lock on the door. They lock the cart and go nearby. The halal cart at 53rd and 6th is probably even worse.
That being said there was one guy that would show up every now and then that was really nasty, I always avoided him. I guess he was the cause of all their health violations.
You people are pathetic.
He had a couple of violations?! So do all the other fruit and vegetable vendors all over the city. That doesnt mean you bully them to leave. My father’s workers must have received thousands over the last 25 years for a mini extention, for a box on the fruit, things of that usual nature. But noone came complaining about fruit poisoning. Let these guys do their freakin job! The 108 precinct cops need to find true criminals to tackle, not a couple of immigrants who probably don’t have enough English to defend themselves. Get the hell out of our neighborhood you snobs…since when dis Sunnyside have such snotty people within its community board. I am truly disturbed.
Tried the “food” at some of the carts and as for them getting the heave ho, good riddens!
People didn’t want the carts there cause they didn’t like looking at them? How selfish. And these folks do wash their hands, theres a sink with hot water in the cart. And they goto the bathroom in a toilet just like everyone else. What a stupid thing to say. The food is just as dirty as the Mcdonalds or the Pizza you find in a brick and mortar joint. Just cause YOU don’t like something doesn’t mean it shouldn’t exist. If someone wants to make money for their family and sell $2 belts. Who cares. Get on with your life and worry about yourself. And give fat people a break. Not everyone can be as beautiful as you. These comments are unintelligent and the world would be a better place if people were more rational and caring.
i know halal means you gotta slit the throat of the animal, hang it upside down, feed it a certain diet, mention Allah as its getting killed… but somewhere there must something about washing your filthy disgusting hands at least once during an 8 hour shift. No?
i don’t support people who roll the skanky carts in and serve food without a place to wash their hands. They got a toilet hidden somewhere in there 3×6 rolling shack???
I do support people who plant themselves here, sign a lease, pay their taxes and um…. hopefully wash their hands.
el real carlos danger
Now the cops will come after the breakdancers
This morning the Halal kart on 40th was gone, it was great, no eye sore. A few hours later it was back.
Hey hipsters, Halal doesn’t mean clean, it just means they pointed the meat in some direction , that’s ALL!
These karts are filthy, if they only showed up at certain times of the day then I’d trust them better like the Mexican kart in front of Capital One.
Did the cops give the sweater vendor a voucher for his goods that they stashed in their van?
The police are only enforcing the law. The vendor under the el on 46th Street had four violations. If the vendor fails to correct the violations, what are the police supposed to do? Ask him nicely to leave? About two years ago, the vendor had an order to close down by the Health Dept., he removed the cart and a few days later was back with another cart.
The food carts are contributing to Sunnyside’s litter problem, and are simply unsightly.
The junk sellers on 46th really had to go. If we’re paying 1500 a month for rent, we really don’t want to see a guy selling 2 dollar belts on the street. It’s just the way it is.
They are unsightly, and contributing to Sunnyside’s litter problem.
How are they allowed to run generators under a bridge anyway?
Doesn’t the 108th have better things to do than roust people trying to make a living? God forbid they actually catch any real criminals.
The city tossed the independent news stand owners out of their stands and handed them over to a large corporation. This is happening everywhere. Small, independent business are deliberately being squashed by government and its corporate masters.
Contact Mr. Stick up his a– Van Bramer who is just a little Bloomberg wanna be about the situation.
I don’t eat at these places, and I don’t plan to anytime soon. But I don’t think our local government should be involved in deciding what type of businesses define the neighborhood. Let’s just allow the free market to do that. If the neighborhood didn’t want carts there, it would stop giving them business.
Restaurants and big box stores vs small produce stands and vendor carts. Sunnyside shines baby!
77% voted No in this poll
Just saying the people who voted yes
Can make me a late night snack
Just PM me your address and
I will gladly wake you up every night at 3am
Thanks
I want my hala cart back!!!!!
Some merchants better be open at 3am and sell me a gyro then!!!!!
Hey community board I hate my neiborhood now!!!
This is extremely disturbing. The cops who are patrolling this area are corrupting their power. I have witnessed one of the vendors being threatened to have his goods tossed into the street if the vendor did not shut his business within the next few minute. My father was a vendor for 25 years, and that is how he supported our family. He was an immigrant in tjis country however worked legally, without harming anybody, to put food on our plates. This city is run by immigrants and if they aren’t going to be supported by making money the “clean” and honest way, this city is going to lose a lot of hardworking people. Noone is saying there are no rules to where vendors can open up however, the ones in Sunnyside, under the 46 street station were opening up with all rulea followed. They have to be a certain distance away from the subway entrance and street which they were. They were clean. Perhaps from time to time certain rules are broken but a ticket…a ticket would do; shutting someones livelyhood?!?! What the hell. Lets really examine what is happening here. I have lived in this neighborhood for over 20 years and have heard of the pressure put on cops and community folks by local big businesses. Key Food, lets evaluate our sources before ruining the lived of the “little folks.”
We want our vendors back!!!
Lets be honest here, halal trucks are vile and disgusting. If these were trendy food trucks, the kind that Manhattan gets then people would be fighting hard. But do you REALLY want to fight for that food truck that sits on the 40th station selling terrible…absolutely terrible food ALL the time?
The taco truck that comes by after 8pm in front of the capital one is excellent and fresh, if we had more of those come to Sunnyside you’d be on to something.
as for these halal merchants, get rid of em’ .
If a vendor is suspected of selling merchandise without a license the cops should ask for the license. If then vendor has a license to sell products and its up to date leave them alone.
If they do not then give them a warning, tell them to close shop until they get the license and then give them the address to where they can go to apply for a license. If they refuse to leave, do not leave after the cops warn them, or return the next day fine them. If they do it a third time then arrest them.
The same goes for if they are selling spoiled food or keeping food in unsanitary conditions. Though in this case the fine would be more severe since its endangering peoples health. They should have a food inspection grade on their cart if they are selling food just like the restaurants around here have.
Anyone touches El Vagabundo is getting a fist to the face. Best taco truck period.
Perhaps our city council representative could inform all of us about the rules and regulations for food vendors, including sanitation and locations. Everyone who is posting has an opinion but nobody seems to really know the laws. While he is at it he could also explain exactly how he makes “allocations” to parks, dog runs etc. He really is the proverbial “800 pound gorilla” in the room. What do you say, Mr. Van B.? You are often mentioned but never heard from here. Of course it would also be wonderful to hear directly from the BID and the 108th. Accountability anyone?
Those good tricks are disgusting and should be gone. What an eyesore on my way to and from the train station. The last thing we want to see is food and garbage strewn about the entrances.
They should make that flea market on 45th and qb remove their stuff from the sidewalk as well.
Every truck vendor should abide by the health laws. That being said, the city should not give out vendor’s licenses if they don’t want people to vend!
I’m sick to death of the business community serving itself at the expense of the people in the community. If those vendors have been here for 15 years it means they have customers. How dare you decide to eliminate your competition using the police?
You are here to serve us, for God’s sake. Stop paying that horrid rent and the landlord’s will have to bring it down. Most of us are working class, the high-rent folks are in the minority and I wish they would move to Forest Hills where they will be in the company of their peers.
…and the Bramer/Quinn/Bloombergian state continues! So many residents counted on the fruit and Halal vendors at the 46th St. subway stop! THANK YOU JIMMY VAN BRAMER aka Quinn-wanna-be.
Hemhem…u peeps are brave…I wouldn’t eat from those trucks if I were you….gives you the squirts! hemhem
What kind of fees do these vendors pay? If it is minimal, maybe it shouldn’t be. Stores that pay actual rent and taxes are put at a big disadvantage, no?
Can Veterans sell/rent their licenses?
What about grading for cleanliness? Are they rated?
Same goes for food trucks.
Anyone?
The halal truck under the el at 46th Street was shut down by the Dept. of Health for health code violations. The police were only enforcing the law. I personally saw food being delivered to the vendor from the trunk of a car. Where does the vendor wash his hands or go to the bathroom? How often does he change the cooking water and where does he dispose of the dirty water? Where does he dispose of his spoiled leftover food? What about his cardboard boxes? I have seen produce boxes piled high under the el and smelled the foul water at the curb and garbage in the litter containers. I’ve had food from street vendors which was tasty, fresh and inexpensive, but the guy under the el was terrible.
Gee, I wish I had a stance. I’ve never eaten from the under the el carts and I don’t think they belong there. I do like the taco truck on Greenpoint and 46th and the Capitol One one. So, yeah, maybe I do have a stance! Get rid of the ones I don’t like and keep the ones I do!!!
Street food sellers are part of the culture around the world. Sunnyside is full of bigots who think food they don’t know is horrible. FYI, when I wrote on bramer’s website, the secret word was ‘police’. How telling is that?!
Cmon guys stop trying to treat this like lic water front …keep my neighborhood plain simple and middle class …stop. complainig about every little thing …..dont like the foood….dont buy it …..btw the tacos on 40th are amazing ………..down with hipters…
I hate this. This is the problem with gentrification. I don’t want another pizza place or another expensive yogurt place…
I know many people who think these food trucks are disgusting. They smell weird (what kind of meat is that?!) When morning comes, there are big grease spots on the sidewalks in front of where they parked. Even more offensive are the carts under the el. Thank goodness the laws are on the books and they’re finally being enforced.
Wow did you hear about the musicians!
These carts provide cheap eats for those of us who are currently at or one step away from food pantry and government assistance.
Plenty of business to go around for all price point food venues…nothing wrong with helping poor people get something inexpensive to eat
Let them stay!!!
Contact Jimmy Van Bramer to voice your outrage over these NYPD thugs who serve themselves and not the will of the People!
http://jimmyvanbramer.com/contact
Let’s just be honest here. When it comes to the Halal cart, the majority of residents in Sunnyside and Woodside like it. Not necessarily the ones who go to CB2 and 108th Council meetings, but the real people, the people who are ignored, the ones who are just trying to feed their families, they probably don’t mind the cart. In fact, when you get home from work at 11:30pm, food trucks the only place to eat!
This seems like an issue of the rich over-empowered and over-listened to residents of the neighborhood taking out there disgust out on the rest of us.
Get over yourselves!
I want our food carts back!!!!! This is ridiculous!!!!
Preparing and selling Food while pigeon poop is oozing down from the train tracks has to be a health hazard. The pigeons are healthier then the people who eat from the food carts because old ladies feed the cats rodents and birds better then the homeless who beg for change. Go sunnyside!
There are a lot of fat people waddling around the neighborhood because of those food carts. Especially the dude who was selling the lamb and rice (AND SODA).
You would never find the svelte Jimmy Van Bramer there.
Hope this doesn’t include the taco truck outside capital one!!
You are correct, “No Thanks”….they need to be set up in a specific place! If they are being arrested, then something must be wrong with the location or license.
As long as they are LICENSED, they should be able to stay. If you don’t like it, blame the Mayor’s office.
Someone should arrest the person who decided to put that piss poor “artwork” on 40th. THAT’s far worse than a vendor.
Just because you are issued a license to vend doesn’t allow you to set up shop just anywhere. The rules about where military veterans can vend and what items they may sell are very clear. It also doesn’t help not to pay fines for previous violations. I’m guessing unpaid fines lead to warrants which lead to an evening in the clink.
where will i go now to get my fix of horse meat and cheaply made goods???
If they’re dirtying the sidewalks, give them a citation and fine – do it enough times and you’re out. But it sounds like that’s an excuse. I’m still trying to figure out how it was that we lost a wine store on 46th Street because it was too big? Anyway best of luck to everybody out there –
Is this what happened to the 46th Street Halal cart? I miss them so much!!!
I liked the fruit vendor too. He was nice.
The others I wasn’t too fond of.