Police arrested a flower vendor on the corner of 71st street and Broadway on Tuesday for selling plants without a license. The plants were thrown out by sanitation workers, one witness said.
“What I saw was the garbage men taking the bins of flowers and throwing them in the truck,” wrote Jeremy, who sent the photos above and below. “People (there were at least 30 people there) were yelling at the police asking why it was happening and why they wouldn’t let people take the flowers rather than throwing them out.” The officers did not respond, Jeremy said. “It’s a shame that all of them went to waste.”
Deputy Inspector Michael Falcon, commanding officer of the 20th precinct, says police gave the vendor time to find someone to take the flowers before they were discarded.
“He was given at least two hours to find somebody to pick up his flowers,” Falcon said. “We did everything possible to try and find someone to take his flowers.” (The police are also not the ones who discarded the plants, Falcon noted.)
The vendor, whose name was not available, had also been warned to stop, Falcon said. “He had been given prior warnings in previous weeks.”
He was charged with unlicensed general vending, given a desk appearance ticket, and released.
I feel bad for this guy.
I think the police should do something more productive with their time than harass some dude selling flowers.
I feel bad for the legitimate businesses that pay rent, insurance and all kinds of other fees to do business properly while this guy just sets himself up in the middle of the street for free!
@lulu – yes, 1000x this. It’s hard enough for small businesses to compete with the chains without adding in the extra competition from people who (in this case and others) are not paying fees and can thus falsely lower their prices.
Because this is so much more productive than going after those pot-smoking street-peeing fellows.
It’s bad the vendor didn’t have a license, but would it have been so hard for the police to let people just take the flowers home? “They didn’t respond”…typical. This is why people don’t like cops. CPR on their cars stands for Courtesy, Professionalism, Respect. Hardly.
He sells rotting plants and flowers which in the summer’s heat stink to high heaven.
Please explain why there are streets worth of crap that is being sold and stored on the street 24/7 by people I’ve seen drinking and buying drugs on Broadway from 72nd to 75th Street and they decide to do this to a flower vendor? And what a waste of flowers that could have cheered people up.
He is definitely selling second quality flowers so is not competing with regular retail, but allowing folks on a budget have some blooms. This city was built on entrepreneurship, yet now you practically have to be a multinational corporation to be able to do business here. The police toss the belongings of homeless people too.
This is the kind of shit that caused a man in Tunisia to lite himself on fire!!!
The average man can no longer start a business, get a loan or capital to get a business going… This is the way it works!!
Good luck..the future’s so bright!!
YEP!
I believe this is the same corner where the police “confiscated” sidewalk-chalk-guy’s supplies a day or two ago.
I imagine that a local business on that block (or cranky old UWS lady) is making complaints.
It turns out Hans Honschar’s supplies were confiscated in Brooklyn, not in the 20th precinct: https://www.westsiderag.com/2016/03/07/chalk-artist-writes-that-police-took-his-materials
They can’t people take the flowers. The vendor who had 2 yourselfers could have handed out flowers to everyone walking by. They were his to give away.
Why don’t you go after the unlicensed bikers riding on sidewalks instead?
Flowers? Flower-vendor? Gosh!r
I see this guy there all the time and he has never bothered me. I wish they would strong arm the citibike riders that are trying to kill me. If I see a few bicyclist getting tasered by the 20th I will know they are serving the public.
Cranky UWS lady? Who are you? What a nasty thing to say. I sympathize with the vendor, but not with you, you with your stereotyping venom. I guess it’s because I’m a UWS lady, close to elderly, and I am offended.
oh that’s such a disappointment. on an otherwise crowded and typically grimy block, i always enjoyed walking by his flowers.
What happened to NYC not punishing for minor offences? Ok so he didn’t have a license and can’t sell them, but why would you make such a public showing and throw out flowers that could have been given to someone or donate the plants at the very least!
don’t they have better things to do here first it was food now flowers its a sin to throw out food and plants. the food could of gone to a shelter and the plants could of gone to a cancer ward think about it.
You said it, Martha. Ageism is the last “acceptable” prejudice and it’s got to stop. Call it out whenever you hear or see it.
A license is required. We don’t want the Med Fly and other vermin. I understand that bed bugs may come from these plants.
What a shame to put all the flower in the garbage, they could give a donation to the hospital or nursing place, at least someone can could have enjoyed it !
PLEASE go after the book vendors next. What a scourge on the UWS!
So sad!
SHAME ON THE 20TH PRECINCT, STOP THIS NONSENSE. This is what happens when you let people with too much time on their hands complain about ANY AND EVERYTHING they deem a “quality of life” violation. This is why young people are advocating for the abolition of the broken windows theory and protesting non-stop. Shame, shame, shame. I am disgusted by these police officers who thought they were doing their job by doing this. Discretion officers, use it.
If you aren’t being sarcastic about the book vendors you should seriously re-think your whole perspective on what it is to live in New York City. Every action has a reaction, remember that.
Broken Windows = Broken Lives.
Good thing the vendor wasn’t selling his flowers outside the Trump property on Fifth Avenue or he The Donald might have shot him.
Remember, Trump said he could probably shoot anyone he wanted and people would still love him!
They were over priced- same flowers for $2 less at Columbus Farms a block away
Although I am sorry this guy lost his source of income, his flowers were all at the end of their cycle – crap.
And the plants and trees were often rootless and would die within hours or days of bringing them home.
On top of that…he vended on the cold days and the minute you bring a frozen plant, tree or bouquet, they wilt or just turn to mush.
I`m responding to Eric . What about cranky old UWS men ???
I count at least 6 public, union, salaried employees spending time on this. not to mention all of the clerical and legal man hours when the guy has to show up for his appearance ticket.
Maybe they can move north 1 block and do something about the book resellers.
Yeah, pot smokers are evil Paul.
It very good the people take away the big mess from flower and tree. Many bad disease make it from the flowers and plant it come from dirty place. It sad for people who try make it business on street but the rule it the rule. I no like.
Right or wrong. Left or right. Black or white. Cat or dog. Doesn’t matter. They should’ve at least thrown them into a compost. Compassion seems not to exist these days.
Word on the street is Hillary Clinton called the 20th on him because he supports Trump
He has been there for years…this is ridiculous.. our world is becoming desensitized to systemic oppression.
Thanks for your comment, Martha. I was going to say something similar but you got there first. Whether the police were called by a store owner, an old lady, or (my guess) an uber-entitled hedge fund manager who doesn’t understand what city living is about — that kind of ageist and misogynist remark drags down the level of discourse and makes the writer look like an ignorant twit.
But the people selling books and drugs on Broadway between 72nd and 74th go unpunished. Freedom of speech is one thing but what amendment covers using the sidewalk as a storage unit? Last I checked, none.
It’s a vivid example of institutionalized racism.
Floral lives matter!
The Department obviously knew this would be the result. It prepared for it and allowed it because of one man just making an honest attempt to put food in his table. Yes fine giving him a desk appearance but how does that benefit him for such a big loss.
How is flagrantly violated international the law an “honest” living? He had ample opportunity to get a license and didn’t.
Now, the libertarian in me thinks a license should not b required. Needless regulations are one of the reasons the cost of living is so high in this city. But it’s the law right now and all the other vendors don’t seem to have a problem with it.
Wow I had some autocorrect issues there…hope my post can be deciphered.
The book vendor dudes and dudettes are covered under the first amendment and do not need a vending license….
Just to add to what has already been said, why bother this guy but leave that lunatic off his meds book-seller on 72nd street to scream at random??? The UWS is such a mess; friends have visited and said they’ve never seen it worse. It’s so dirty (Bway/Amsterdam near Rite-Aid and Starbucks etc.(give litterers a ticket for god’s sake)..Months ago I called Ms. Rosenthals office about the empty newspaper boxes on 72nd &WE where I had seen some rats playing with garbage…yes indeed, they were on it they said! They were definitely removing those boxes -the papers they held have been gone for years–Yet–the boxes are still there and some nights…so are the rats. Chubby rats. And so….our neighborhood sinks lower and lower. Who thinks it’s a good idea to allow peeing on the street??? It just gets worse and worse.
Let me try and say that a different way: You think the police should do something more productive with their time than enforce the law?
What would that be?
He should have given them away. He’s selling and certainly not collecting or paying taxes (it’s always so interesting how no one ever wants to pay taxes), not paying rent, not paying the city, etc. Undercutting lots of hard working bodega guys. Not nice.
Personally I’d rather see cops giving out tickets for UWS’ers who let their dogs soil the streets day after day without picking up their poop. A rash of $150 fines for that and you’ll see the dog poop start disappearing. Or actively ticketing drivers who idle their cars for longer than the regulated couple of minutes, spewing more and more pollution into our neighborhood.
When we are too rigid with rules it may be too harmful
to the society, thats why a lot of business goes to China, NYC small business are over regulated ended up closing. People cannot afford store rent, ened up closing.
His flowers were so pretty to see.
What’s next, manhandling the bagpiper and trashing his bagpipes?
Hands off the cool sax player who plays the theme from the Pink Panther and Someone to Watch Over Me.
Book vendors= happy readers
Stay strong, UWS!
So can the 2-0 write some speeding tickets now? Or does someone else have to die first, before these laws get enforced?