Jackson Heights Life

http://www.qgazette.com/news/2009/0610/features/007.html

"City Councilmember Helen Sears wants to make the quality of life for her fellow Jackson Heights residents as pleasant as possible. One way to achieve this goal, she says, is to create an area totally free of food vendors whose carts now crowd sidewalks and generally block access to streets."

The area in question "runs from 72nd Street and 35th Avenue and south to Roosevelt Avenue then extends east to 82nd Street on the north side of 37th Avenue and 78th Street on the south side."

This would be a great shame. The food vendors are a valuable part of the community - and one of the reasons non-JH residents visit the neighborhood.

I'm a recent arrival in JH - and I'd miss the food vendors if they were to be pushed out. I plan on contacting Sears' office to voice my opinion. I hope others are inspired to do the same.

I'm no expert on this, but some of the vendors near the 74th Street train station look like they are selling food out of big garbage cans stuck in shopping carts.  Is that up to health code?  Do they have permits?  Can it possibly be sanitary and healthy?  But, on the other hand, they seem to have lots of steady customers, so I guess their food tastes good and is not killing anybody!

I'm no expert on this, but some of the vendors near the 74th Street train station look like they are selling food out of big garbage cans stuck in shopping carts.  Is that up to health code?

Yes.

Do they have permits?

Yes.

Can it possibly be sanitary and healthy?

Yes and maybe.

I won't vouch for every cart, but the ones that I frequent (I eat at Shangri-La Express and El Gallo Giro at least once a week) are good-quality operations.

Here is an article from the champions of Quiet Enjoyment, the Jackson Heights Beautification Group
http://www.flickr.com/photos/orlick/3618383692/sizes/l/

Helen Sears appears to be just like the rest of them, eschewing culture in favor of corporate developer revitalization. To get political, check out Tony Avella, his father was a hot dog vendor.

One of the biggest draws for me when I moved to Jackson Heights was the restaurants & food carts here & in the surrounding area. I think that it's one of the many things that draw people to Jackson Heights, in fact last week getting on the Manhattan bound F from Roosevelt, I talked to some tourists from Germany who had specifically come out to Jackson Heights after hearing & reading about all the food carts in the neighborhood. It adds character & differentiation...if I had wanted to live in Park Slope, I would have done that.
Also, I don't know too much about Helen Sears but does she not realize the rich traditions of street food for immigrants' in their country of origin? It seems like this is almost an attack on immigrant businesses, but hey what do I know?

Also, I don't know too much about Helen Sears but does she not realize the rich traditions of street food for immigrants' in their country of origin? It seems like this is almost an attack on immigrant businesses, but hey what do I know?

Let's please not turn this thread into another potboiler discussion about the immigrant community in Jackson Heights, or an attack on the people who live in the historic district (like myself) who just want to keep their streets clean, quiet, and uncongested. Regulations can and should be put in place to address these issues of concern without turning it into a matter of class- or cultural warfare. Street vendors of all kinds, not just food vendors, should be licensed and regulated, never be allowed to block pedestrian traffic, and like any other type of business, held responsible and fined for any litter around their establishment. I am sure an amicable compromise can be achieved for all parties if we refrain from the name-calling and petty accusations.

I really don't understand this proposal at all...most (all?) of the street carts are within a block or two of the subway stations, and not setting up in the middle of the historic residential district.  I live right smack in the middle of the carts, and many people in my large building (including myself) degrade our health with street cart food all the time.  Can I really call 311 and tell them how much I love Samy's halal or the woman selling tamales out of a shopping cart on 74th and Roosevelt?

Maybe one doesn't want to dredge up old arguments about immigrants, historic district, etc...but come on!  Helen Sears is a politician trying to win an election, and thus is making this proposal to curry favor with a certain portion of the electorate (i.e. those that complain about street carts and would welcome a draconian solution).

I'm not opposed to the carts, though I will say as a general rule I do not patronize street vendors, particularly when it comes to food. I felt the need to speak out because I felt that some of the posts in this thread were attacking newer residents of the historic district unfairly by siting them as the root cause for Ms. Sears' position on this issue. You seem to agree with that viewpoint, which is your prerogative.

As for the second part of your reply, you are undoubtedly biased if you don't think the sidewalks on Roosevelt Avenue are too crowded and filthy to easily navigate as a pedestrian. And no, this is not just because of the food vendors, but their presence does compound the problem. The carts in front of the subway station/bus terminal always create an obstacle, particularly during the evening rush hours. There is often some liquid on the sidewalks by the food vendors, whether it is melted ice, discarded washwater, or spilled beverages and condiments. (I'll add that I don't particularly care for the noise or smell that emanates from the portable generators some of the carts use either.) And it's hard to deny that they don't bare any responsibility for the litter problem when you examine what's often found lying on the streets.

That being said, I do not support a "draconian" solution but neither do I think it's unreasonable to require the vendors to relocate their carts during busier times of the day. This is what is often done in Manhattan... Vendors must move from the avenues to the side streets at particular hours.