Sen. Schumer Protesting Threat to Red Hook Vendors

Oh, yes, the plight of the Red Hook vendors has clearly gotten some attention. Sen. Charles Schumer is going to be on hand at the Red Hook Ballfields today at 1PM to protest the wrongheaded Parks Dept. plan to force the vendors into a competitive bidding situation. Porkchop Express--which has done the best job in New York City reviewing the individual food stands in Red Hook--posts the Senator's press release, as do our friends at Eater:

Parks Dept. Forcing Citywide Favorite Food Stands to Re-Bid for Permits They’ve Held for Years, Could Raise Fees Exponentially and Lead to Their Elimination by Big Corporations

Locally Owned Vendors Serve Eclectic High-Quality, Affordable Cuisine that is a Symbol of Neighborhood Vitality and a Weekend Staple for Brooklyn and City Families

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer will criticize a move by the Parks Department that could force food vendors operating at the ball fields in Red Hook out of business TOMORROW, Saturday, June 9 at 1:00pm in Red Hook. Every weekend, the vendors sell high-quality, affordable food, mostly Latin-style, at the ball fields and have become a much beloved weekend destination for families throughout Brooklyn and the entire city. However, the Parks Department informed the vendors that they would now have to competitively bid for permits they have held for years, which could result in an exponential increase in rates or the prospect of being out-bid by corporate conglomerates. Schumer said that these vendors are Brooklyn treasures, and are a symbol of the diverse cultural vitality of the community that should be preserved and supported, not subject to the City’s bottom line.

Schumer will be joined by Cesar Fuentes, President of the Food Vendors of Red Hook, Assemblyman Felix Ortiz, food historian Ed Levine and area chefs.

DATE: Saturday June 9, 2007
TIME: 1:00pm
PLACE: Red Hook ball field #1
Corner of Bay St and Clinton St

We'd have thought that Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe would have dropped this like a bucket of toxic waste by now. Let's see how he many editorials, press conferences, blog items, petition campaigns and emails he can handle before he drives a stake through the heart of this idiocy (and PR nightmare). Sen. Schumer should have some fun with this one. We often roll our eyes at his weekend media events, but we applaud him loudly for turning up the pressure to save our beloved Red Hook vendors. Give 'em hell, Chuck.