BY JASON COHEN
As the cap on food vendor
permits has not changed since
the 80s and many vendors operate
illegally, NYC is hoping
to change this with legislation
that would nearly double permits.
On Jan. 28, the council will
vote on Intro-116, which would
increase permits from 5,000 to
9,000, create an offi ce of street
vendor enforcement and establish
a street vendor advisory
The bill has 31 sponsors, including
Council Members Vanessa
Gibson, Diana Ayala and
Reuben Diaz Sr., but none could
be reached for comment. While
this could eliminate the “black
market” for licenses and help
people make a living, many in
the Bronx are not in favor of it.
“Nobody has ever argued
the fact that food vendors
play an integral part of what
is the food business of NYC,”
said Lisa Sorin, president of
the Bronx Chamber of Commerce.
“That being said, over
the course of the year you have
had a multitude of vendors who
are unlicensed or bought their
license from someone else for
thousands of dollars.”
According to Sorin, there
are three reasons for the bill:
the immigrant population
should be allowed to work as
vendors, the growth in population
and the council feels that
increasing licenses will eliminate
the black market.
Sorin told the Bronx Times
that discussions about increasing
the cap have been on the table
for about 30 years, but this
is not the right time to do it.
If enforcing illegal vendors
is poor now, how will it be with
9,000 people? Furthermore, this
isn’t fair to the brick and mortar
eateries, which pay property
taxes, employees, utilities
and are banned on indoor dining
currently.
“If you cannot control what’s
already there what makes you
think additional vendors will
do well,” she stressed. “I have
to question the hard push for
this thing now.”
If anyone thinks Sorin is
against food carts they are
mistaken. Her father began his
career operating a hot dog cart
and eventually opened his own
business.
Sorin stressed that the
chamber supports entrepreneurship,
but it’s really about
enforcement. Places like
BRONX TIMES REPORTER,
board.
Southern Blvd., Fordham Road
and Kingsbridge are already
inundated with vendors and
this could only make things
worse. Even communities like
Throggs Neck have dealt with
them.
Wilma Alonso, executive
director of the Fordham Road
Business Improvement District
(BID), feels the proposed legislation
will hurt small businesses
even more, especially
on Fordham Road where unlicensed
vendors (both food and
general merchandise) operate
with impunity since there is
nearly zero enforcement on a
corridor where vending is actually
prohibited Monday to
Saturday per the NYC Administrative
Code.
The number of unlicensed
vendors along Fordham Road
number in the dozens, most
of which do not pay taxes and
they clog the sidewalks to the
point where social distancing
is nearly impossible.
On Jan. 21, all of the Bronx
BIDs sent a letter to Speaker
Corey Johnson and Councilwoman
Margaret Chin, the
lead sponsor on the bill explaining
why they are not in favor of
Intro-116.
“As you might understand,
there is a lot of distrust in the
administration because the
current vending laws are not
enforced, so why would this
newly mandated offi ce that is
not empowered to enforce the
law, bring about any meaningful
reform,” the letter states.
“Our recommendation is that
the council require the street
vendor advisory board to examine
22 BTR
the current laws fi rst
and then establish and fund the
offi ce of enforcement and then
consider increasing the number
of permits. Passing a law
which enacts all three of these
policies simultaneously in our
current economic environment
will not bring about equitable
reform.”
Alonso told the Bronx Times
not only is she angry about the
proposed bill, but because there
is a vacant council seat in her
district, she has no one to help
her. She spoke to Councilman
Carlos Menchaca in Brooklyn,
but he does not represent her.
Like Sorin, Alonso questions
how if the Consumer
and Worker Protection can’t
enforce vendors now how will
they do it with 9,000?
“I feel this is an out of control
situation,” she stressed.
“It’s time to reform the street
vendor industry and we need
to do it right. Fordham is out of
control.”
The BIDS also submitted
seven amendment recommendations
for Intro-116:
Include a ‘circuit-breaker’
to ensure that additional permits
are issued only once the
city has the capacity to appropriately
regulate and monitor
vendors,
Ensure the street vendor
review committee has equal
representation of all relevant
stakeholders,
Establish a dedicated complaints
registry that allows for
New Yorkers to directly report
issues surrounding vending,
Protect pedestrian safety by
expanding vending proximity
requirements,
Map allowable vending locations
and ensure that these locations
are publicly available,
Strengthen penalties for repeat
violations and
Strengthen community engagement
processes for vending
location pilot programs.
Councilmen Fernando Cabrera
and Mark Gjonaj, chair
of the small business committee,
understand times are
tough and people need to make
a living, but caution at how Intro
116 can affect restaurants
and the enforcement of the bill.
“While the overall intent
of the bill is good- stricter enforcement
to protect brick and
mortar businesses- we must
consider the full impact on vulnerable
businesses,” Cabrera
said. The COVID-19 pandemic
has taken a tremendous toll on
small businesses, the “mom
and pop” stores that have been
an anchor for so many communities
for so long. Many closed
almost a year ago and have not
re-opened.
Those that survived the
pandemic lock-down have experienced
substantial fi nancial
harm. This impacts not only
the business, but the entire
community as jobs and amenities
disappear. This is why
we must carefully consider the
timing of this legislation. “
Under the proposed legislation,
a number of new permits,
now referred to as supervisory
licenses, would be issued in
batches each year beginning in
2022 until 2032. These licenses
require at least one supervisory
licensee to be present at a
pushcart at all times.
This new requirement will
not be applied to existing permits
until 2032. The bill will
also create a new vending law
enforcement unit, which would
exclusively enforce vending
laws.
It would focus on areas of
the city with known vending
enforcement challenges, but
will respond to all vending
complaints and violations. It
would also establish a street
vendor advisory board to assess
the effectiveness of the enforcement
unit and the rollout
of new permits.
There will be an offi ce of
street vendor enforcement,
which would consist of enforcement
agents who are specially
trained in laws and rules related
to vending on the streets
and sidewalks. This offi ce will
be fully operational on or before
Sept. 1. Enforcement activities
include street patrols
to inspect or examine the vending
activities of at least 75 percent
of permittees or licensees
on an annual basis.
Bronx leaders not in favor
of street vendor food bill
Illegal food vendors on Fordham Road Photos courtesy of Wilma Alonso