BY KEVIN DUGGAN
A Kings County carpenter
has developed a low-tech security
device that he claims
would defeat the scourge of
package pirates plaguing
the borough — if only people
would buy it!
Inventor Bob James
chained his anti-thievery
device, called a “Bob Box,”
to a light post at Remsen
Street near Borough Hall last
Wednesday, as part of a guerrilla
marketing campaign designed
to drum up interest in
what’s undeniably an awkward
looking creation.
But the Bob Box, which appears
like a cross between a
wood chipper and a mailbox,
met a lukewarm reception
from passersby, including one
woman who noted that the box,
while good in theory, might
not work so well in practice.
“I can defi nitely understand
the need for that because
I’ve always said, society
is not ready for all this online
shopping,” said Evaleen, who
didn’t give her last name. “I
COURIER L 4 IFE, DEC. 6-12, 2019
The boxes advertise a safe place
for delivered packages along with
a number and email to reach out
to. Photo by Kevin Duggan A “Bob Box” appeared outside Borough Hall Wednesday.
think it could be a little more
compact, the design needs to
be jazzed up a little, because I
don’t know if anyone is going
to want that in their yard like
that.”
James, a Bedford-Stuyvesant
retiree, designed his
namesake box — which serves
as a secure, curb-side package
receptacle that’s accessible by
key — as an answer to the dramatic
rise in package thievery
throughout the borough.
But the handcrafted security
device costs a whopping
$199, is made entirely out of
wood, and features a comically
large nozzle jutting out from
the storage compartment,
which one local said made the
Bob Box less than ideal for the
mean streets of Brooklyn.
“I think it’s an interesting
idea if you have a private home,
but here in the city, I can’t
imagine it,” said Jon Berall.
“One more thing like this in
front of the apartment house?
It’s just another big thing that’s
going to fall apart.”
However, the inventor
said it’s exactly the Bob Box’s
low-tech nature that makes it
an ideal deterrent for Kings
County package pirates.
“You don’t need to maintain
batteries or give codes to
deliverers,” he said. “The only
thing you lose is the package
pirate blues.”
So far, James has yet to sell
any of his Bob Boxes, despite
a guerrilla marketing campaign
Photo by Kevin Duggan
that’s seen him install
devices outside subway stops
in Bedford-Stuyvesant and
Williamsburg, in addition to
the Borough Hall box.
But those stunts unfortunately
violate the city’s administrative
code, which makes it
illegal to leave any box, barrel,
bale of merchandise or other
movable property on a public
street or place, and James relocated
the Remsen street container
shortly after installing
it.
“I have to move that box —
it can’t be there,” he admitted.
Anyone interested in being
the very fi rst, proud owner of
a Bob Box can reach James at
(718) 789-8910, or by email at
unclebob8910@gmail.com.
In-the-box thinking
Inventor debuts package-theft deterrent outside Boro Hall
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