Street Vendor Project

Holiday season? Give a loan to a street vendor

Two years ago, we realized that vendors don't just need legal advice, training, and a voice at City Hall. Sometimes they also need loans to expand their businesses -- or simply maintain them in the face of high fines and harsh economic times. We raised $1,700 to help Mohammed Ullah...

Vendors’ day

Politicians all love to wave flags and march in parades on Veterans Day, which was last week. But when it comes to supporting bills to help veteran street vendors (like Intros 434 and 435) our friends at City Hall sometimes are not so patriotic. There are nearly 2,000 US military veterans working on the streets of New York...

Occupy SVP

Not only is Zuccotti Park, the headquarters of Occupy Wall Street, just a few blocks from SVP's office in Lower Manhattan. Its also very close to our heart. As protypical members of the 99%, street vendors are oppressed by wealthy elites who are "uncomfortable" with their presence, and yet who have the ear of...

Space for vendors, too!

There are a whole lot of urban planners, thinkers and writers who care about public space and how its used. In New York, the Department of Transportation has won rave reviews the last few years for creating people-friendly public spaces, with bike lanes and plazas. But rarely do urban planners plan for street vendors....

A message to City Council

Our campaign to get rid of the $1,000 vending tickets, aka Intros 434 and 435 is going well, and a majority of City Council Members are now co-sponsors of both bills. But a few Council Members are hesitant to get on board without more knowledge. Which we fully respect. That...

Under the bridge

There are two worlds in New York City, and the difference between them is the difference between the Union Square Greenmarket, where foodies peruse organic heirloom tomatoes at $4 per pound, and the Forsyth Street Market in Chinatown, under the Manhattan Bridge, where $4 will get you three pounds of onions,...

Dispute mediation

One of the most difficult things about bringing together street vendors into one community is that sometimes they fight against each other for scarce sidewalk space. Ocassionally, when people are struggling like vendors are, it even gets violent. Since no vendor has any legal claim to any particular spot, its all about...

No competition

There will never be a lack of brick-and-mortar businesses complaining about "unfair competition" from street vendors. Whether its Korean green grocers in the outer boroughs or Business Improvement Districts in Washington Heights, store-based merchants love to use their power against their less-developed neighbors selling from tables, carts or trucks. But you know...

Everyday heroes

All street vendors are heroes, but only very few get recognized for it. Sometimes they save a city from likely calamity and end up getting phone calls from President Obama. Other times they see something, say something, and it turns out to be false alarm, like this guy near Fordham University yesterday. Sometimes...