I write these words as a Queens native, military veteran and New York City street vendor. When I first came back to New York after being in the Air Force, I fell in with the wrong crowd. For six years, I sold drugs in Washington Heights.
But I knew I would not last long if I stayed on that path — and that, as a single dad, I needed to turn my life around. I got my license to be a street vendor, and it was the best thing that ever happened to me.
Instead of resorting to dealing drugs, I now have my own business: I sell balloons and lightup toys on 124th St. in Harlem, and I use my earnings to support my 10-year-old daughter.
But you know what? The Police Department never treated me as poorly when I sold drugs as they do now that I’m a vendor. I pay taxes and sell legal merchandise — and yet, last year, the NYPD gave me 18 tickets! Usually, they do so because they claim that I am too close to the building or that I have an “improper stand,” whatever that means.
They can always find some reason to give me tickets. It seems to me that I am seen as little more than a nuisance to those who patrol our streets — though, again, there is nothing at all illegal about my behavior.
And it’s not only me they harass. Last year, the city gave more than 26,000 tickets to the hardworking vendors of New York City. Most are for minor infractions, like placing your table too far from the curb. The price of these tickets can reach as high as $1,000.
Many vendors, who may rely on purchases of less than $5, can’t pay such a penalty, so they lose their licenses.
Yes, there should be fines when vendors break the rules — but $1,000 is too much for these smallest of businesses.
Luckily, vendors around the city of all races, colors and creeds are getting organized and working to change this unfair system. We are asking the City Council to pass two bills — Intros 434 and 435, sponsored by Councilman Steve Levin (D-Brooklyn) — that would lower the fines to a maximum of $250 and make sure first-time offenders are given a break.
After all, vendors contribute to the vibrancy and economy of New York City. Many of us are immigrants striving for the American Dream. Many a tourist leaves this city having made a memorable purchase from us — whether it’s a hot dog or an Empire State Building statue. A New York without street vendors would be like a New York without yellow cabs.
And while many storeowners complain about vendors, we have been part of our city since 1691, which is when immigrants first began selling from pushcarts.
In fact, many big businesses were first started as vendors — D’Agostino’s supermarkets, Cohen’s Fashion Optical, Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s. These big stores seem to have forgotten where they came from. Vendors don’t want to hurt stores — we want to co-exist with them.
In fact, I dream of having a store myself some day: I’d like to open a chain of discount stores called Smiley’s Place. But before I am able to do that, I need to grow my small business. With so many tickets, however, my efforts are routinely hampered.
It is to give a break to entrepreneurs like me that the Council should pass the proposed bills without delay. It would help me and thousands of other vendors who are struggling to make it in this city.
And the police? They should focus on the real criminals.
Smiley is a board member of the Street Vendor Project at the Urban Justice Center.
