Bill passes to restrict peddlers on Fifth Ave.

The New York State Legislature passed a bill restoring New York City's right to restrict street peddling on Fifth Avenue.

The bill is now awaiting the signature of Governor Cuomo to become law, said Tom Cusick, president of the Fifth Avenue Association, which campaigned aggressively for the measure.

Acting in the final days of the legislative session, both the Senate and Assembly gave approval to the bill, which was championed by State Senator Roy Goodman and Assemblyman Steve Sanders. The bill closed a loophole that gave disabled veterans the right to peddle goods anywhere. As a result, Cusick said, organized peddling operations recruited homeless veterans to hawk goods on the side and paid them scanty wages.

"This is a victory for all New Yorkers," Cusick said. "When Fifth Avenue becomes congested with peddlers selling cheap and shoddy goods, its luster is dimmed. Tourists and the entire city economy inevitable will suffer if that is permitted to happen."

The loophole results from a court interpretation of an 1894 statute. After the court ruling, Fifth Avenue and other main shopping streets were suddenly flooded with peddlers selling T-shirts, counterfeit watches, and other low-cost items. The City was deprived of millions of dollars in tax revenues, and the sidewalks became over-congested and litter-filled.

The Fifth Avenue Association is now formulating plans for a program to hire disabled veterans for jobs with many member companies, at twice the minimum wage. Also in formation is a plan to create a training program that would help veterans establish their own small businesses rather than having to resort to hawking goods on the sidewalk.

Cusick thanked the many members of the Fifth Avenue Association who called or wrote to their legislators in support of the bill. "Their calls and letters showed Albany that this was a law New York City needed to maintain its international reputation as a premiere shopping destination," Cusick said. "Our members' personal involvement in this effort helped make the difference."

COPYRIGHT 1991 Hagedorn Publication
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