Monday, November 12, 2012

Downtown Flushing's pop-up shanty businesses

Take a look at the following photos and ask yourself if it looks like legitimate business is being conducted here.

Does the City actually issue permits to businesses being run out of plywood shanties?

Is it ok to dump your wares on the sidewalk and create obstructions?

Perhaps too busy of a location for this to be safe.

Is this a vending shed or a scaffold?

88 comments:

georgetheatheist said...

It's Peter Koo-Koo Land. You know that NYC Councilmember whose physical appearance is that of an unmade bed. It's KooKooKaChoo's purview to be the watchdog for any transgression to the aesthetics of the local municipality.

Take a bow Peter - but watch out for those snot rockets.

Anonymous said...

We're a third world city..........

Anonymous said...

Where is the Flushing BID?
Where is Community Board #7?
Where is Councilman Peter Koo?
Where is Assembly Member Grace Meng?
Where is Senator Toby Ann Stavisky?
Where is Congressman Gary Ackerman?
Where is the 109th PCT?
Where is the FDNY?
Where is the Dept. of Consumer Affairs?
Where is the IRS?

Maybe each of them is hiding out in one of those (legal or illegal?) red shacks!


Anonymous said...

LOL!
Floo-shing is such a "success"!

Anonymous said...

That is where the Q13 and Q28 buses turn onto 39th Ave. for their last stop.

Isn't there enough confusion and congestion on that little street as it is?
Now an additional safety hazard is added.

Flushing Phantom said...

What does it cost to rent one of these booths?

Try training your rooftop CCTV camera down on these,
TDC's, Michael Meyers!

Anonymous said...

It looks like the old Coney Island boardwalk.

"Step right up sailor...knock down those milk bottles and win a prize for your girl".

Jerry Rotondi said...

No wonder many avoid stopping or shopping in downtown Flushing.
Is this the BID's answer to improving things?

Anonymous said...

We just heard that Dennis P. Gallaher is selling porn from one of those sheds.

Anonymous said...

I guess that the much touted Flushing Commons won't be built, if this is an indication of Flushing's real economic future.

3rd world? It looks more like it's turd world!

Anonymous said...

Flushing is a third world wasteland. Flushing - It's over.

Anonymous said...

Grace Meng's vision of America. Flushing has a booming economy, pay everything in cash , do not pay any taxes and recieve aid from the City, State and Federal Gov. Have family member arrested for bribary, get elected to Congress ,PRICELESS.

Anonymous said...

It's been over since Julia Harrison was term limited out
of office.
She was the bulwark that held back the tide.

The clubhouse had to be rid of her before they could substitute theirs Asiatic cohorts...John Liu, followed by Peter Koo.

Deed the town to Taiwan!

Anonymous said...

Oh,
but isn't Flushing supposed to be "vibrant and bustling"?
LOL!
What a suck-sess!

Anonymous said...

Please, this can't be for real. It's photo shop pictures or something.
In a million years I would never think to see something like this.
Well maybe a few years now that Flushing has turned into a cesspool.
Where are the local elected politicians ?

Anonymous said...

Queens Crossing (behind these shacks) still has many vacancies, and now this crap competes with their retail.

Anonymous said...

Will these "businesses" be collecting sales tax?

All I see is a lot of sidewalk blockage and personal injury lawsuits in the making.

Anonymous said...

I guess that putting in a call to DOB is a waste of time.

Maybe this is Mike Meyers' and Mike Lee's idea of affordable housing.

TDC has to raise money some how because of their under-rented fiasco.

When is the shovel being put into the ground for their "Flushing Commons" project?

A lot of shit's been shoveled at CB#7's public hearings regarding it...and everyone ate it all up!

Anonymous said...

May the last Americans take the U.S. flag when leaving Flushing !

Anonymous said...

There's crap that's tolerated in Queens and not in Manhattan.

And there's crap that's tolerated in Flushing and nowhere else in Queens.

But now we have crap that's tolerated in Flushing that wouldn't be tolerated in Beijing or Taipei. It's a new low.

Anonymous said...

Tear it down Bloomberg - this is why Queens goes to SHI% !

Anonymous said...

They remind me of the sheds that now get set up outside St. Bartholomew's on Park Avenue during November and December ... they also block people walking ...

Anonymous said...

Isn't the very first thing to check is to see if they have the proper vendor permits to operate something like these shacks? Let's hear from the Dept of Consumer Affairs! How about the news channels do some investigating into these operations?

Anonymous said...

That is where the Q13 and Q28 buses turn onto 39th Ave. for their last stop.

And it's already a dangerous intersection: you can see the crosswalk in photo #3, but there's no stop sign on 39th Ave. Cars don't stop without the stop sign, and (some) pedestrians assume it's safe to cross because they see a painted crosswalk.

Anonymous said...

Cool it, everyone. It's just a temporary Christmas stall. Union Square has them too.

georgetheatheist said...

Not to worry. I'm pretty sure that the Queens community papers, after reading about it here on Queens Crap, will be sending their investigative reporter/fotog teams to get to the bottom of this. Look for hard-hitting editorials this week concerning this disgrace from:

Schenkler of the Tribune
Weidler of the Chronicle
Liston of Flushing Times
Schnepps of the Courier

Anonymous said...

welcome to china.

No, wait. I've been to china. This is actually much nicer than most of china, sadly.

Still, this is what these animals think is "quality" living.

Anonymous said...

The most amazing part of this is that the 109th precinct is literally one block away — just on the other side of the municipal lot. It is the most useless precinct in the city.

The Chinese know there is no enforcement.

Flushing has officially become a dirty third world shanty town.

Anonymous said...

Not to worry. I'm pretty sure that the Queens community papers, after reading about it here on Queens Crap, will be sending their investigative reporter/fotog teams to get to the bottom of this. Look for hard-hitting editorials this week concerning this disgrace from:

Schenkler of the Tribune
Weidler of the Chronicle
Liston of Flushing Times
Schnepps of the Courier



One minor correction, George. Liston is only the editor, not the owner, like all of the other losers that you listed. The owner used to be Steve Blank until he sold it to Rupert Murdoch a few years back.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous said...
Cool it, everyone. It's just a temporary Christmas stall. Union Square has them too.
------------------------------------------------------
Screw you, troll!!!

Anonymous said...

Oh isn't this just MARVY! We can observe an "exotic" culture right here in our own country! Quick let's get a picture and pretend to be so culturally aware and tolerant for a few minutes. Then, let's intend to get on the 7 train to further our cultural experience, but really get on to the LIRR and make our escape back into Manhattan or to the North Shore, where we are safe. VIBRANT! DIVERSE! BOLLOCKS!

Anonymous said...


The city shouldn't allow any such businesses on public display, either they are well built or not. Soon this area will look like downtown Shanghai.
Asians should Americanize themselves and realize that the moment they set foot on this continent, other rules apply and not theirs.

Anonymous said...

I'm sure there are no counterfeit goods being sold there!!!

Anonymous said...

Business in the Flushing way is the new hope for this country. Jobless? No problem. Go sale something in the street, and get good paid, ca$h.

Anonymous said...

I was born and raised in Flushing but left in 1972 for college and never looked back. Even by then it was starting to become a shit-hole, now it is a cesspool. Sad, but I guess the RKO Keiths is a perfect metaphor for Flushing.

Anonymous said...

The Christmas markets that operate at Union Square and Bryant Parks are LICENSED and don't block pedestrian traffic.

If I gave anyone the shit they'll be selling at these cheap Chinese crap stands for holiday gifts, I'd be on the recipient's blacklist for at least 5 years.

C'mon troll...come up with a better BS story.

The next time I pass by these sheds if I don't see a DCA license on each one of them....I'll be calling "Shame On You" for TV coverage!

Anonymous said...

Oh sure. as though a DCA license is assurance of anything other than that the thief in chief got his few shekels. Otherwise its an imprimatur of nothing. So say Halloran,Centola and Nastasi.

Anonymous said...

Gramps...I've been in stores when the DCA paid visits and have seen fines imposed for people NOT displaying their ID DCA number.

Anonymous said...

#38 you schmuck...you are commenting to yourself.

this is my first comment on this topic.

Anonymous said...

I was born and raised in Flushing but left in 1972 for college and never looked back. Even by then it was starting to become a shit-hole, now it is a cesspool. Sad, but I guess the RKO Keiths is a perfect metaphor for Flushing.
---------------------------------
As bad as it was back then, it was infinitely better than it is today. All of Queens was.

Anonymous said...

Greg Mocker of WPIX will have his crew thee shortly to get the re scoop and show up those fine upstanding local elected officials and agencies.

Anonymous said...

I have been living in North Flushing for twenty years and have seen the downhill path of my once great neighborhood.
There is a underground economy that exist where no one pays taxes. I have seen it all and it's getting worse by the year. Very sad but true Flushing will become a giant Asian superpower with it's own set of laws.

georgetheatheist said...

Who owns these stalls? The vendors own them or rent? From whom? What architect drew up the design? They seem to be of cookie-cutter origin. Permits were applied and paid for? Their costs? Where did those monies wind up? Where are these permits filed? Who granted them?

Et cetera, et cetera.

Anonymous said...

I bet the owners of these pseudo-businesses will be living in those huts soon.

I am proud to say that I live in a suburb far away and I am sad for my parents and in-laws that are forced to use Main Street as a transportation hub.

I am proud to say that zoning laws are strictly enforced in my suburb and none of this garbage moves in.

It is sad that my parents and in-laws are really too old to move but the instant they die and leave me their homes I will sell them and never go back.

Main Street is an unsanitary disgusting disease ridden area that will be the first place in the US where some disease will break out.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous # 28:

"The most amazing part of this is that the 109th precinct is literally one block away — just on the other side of the municipal lot. It is the most useless precinct in the city."

The 109 is one of, if not the biggest coverage area of any precinct in the city. Staffing levels are low (thank our mayor for that). Jobs are backlogged and they don't always have time for petty quality of life issues like an illegal vendor (like the ones who are set up in the arcade next to McDonald's between Roosevelt and 38th)

If you are having an issue try calling community affairs. If that doesn't work go to a community council meeting and get involved. If you aren't involved you can't complain because you haven't tried.

Anonymous said...

I see that no one mentioned the fact that these "booths" are electrified!!! This is shocking, so to speak. We must remember to stay grounded.

Anonymous said...

Uh.."SCHMUCK"...I'm commenting on YOUR ignorance!

The Flushing Phantom said...

If these booths are electrified, where are they getting their power from?

Is it from Queens Crossing?
Are they stealing power from street utility poles?

Or is it being supplied by those dangerous gasoline powered generators?

These booths pose fire hazard!

Anonymous said...

Call the 109th Community Affairs Unit?
RU kidding.
The only "affairs" they're interested in, is getting "favors" from local Asian madams for looking the other way!

Anonymous said...

"Petty quality of life issues"?
WE ARE TALKING ABOUT DANGEROUS CONDITIONS HERE!
Stop making excuses for the lazy 109th!
Everybody knows that this is one of the most corrupt precincts in NYC!
They change commanders like underwear...almost every 2 years.
That's why it's known among law enforcers as "the promotion precinct".

Anonymous said...

And what does FDNY Captain or is it Lieutenant Gene Kelty , chair of CB#7, got to say about this?

Anonymous said...

If the 109th precinct's territory is too big for them to handle, then it's way past time to set up an additional police precinct!

And...PUHLEEZE....not one of those phony Stavisky sponsored AUXILIARY units!

That mirrored NYPD AUX booth at the Flushing library hasn't been used for years.

Keep on overbuilding and straining the resources of our first responders.
Better yet, "Forget it Jake. It's Chinatown"!

Anonymous said...

Wah, wah, wah....
those poor overloaded cops have no time for "petty" infractions.

If I were an officer at the 109th PCT, I would walk over during my coffee break and ask to see permits.

Unless I was instructed to leave it be by my captain.

Going to the can takes longer than a one block walk.

Anonymous said...

If one of those booths sells donuts....you can bet that the cops will be there in a flash...especially if some freebies are slipped to the boys and girls in blue.

Anonymous said...

What have the small business owners along Main Street got to say about these shanties taking away their trade?

Anonymous said...

Enough with all the sympathy for NYC cops. Most live outside the city anyway.
A cop can put in 20 years out of the academy and retire at 40.

A cop can earn up to about $90,000 a year.

Ya know what? Fughettaboutit!
Give me my gun permit and I'll police myself!

That will give "officers' time to deal with all of the "petty" stuff I've got no legal status to.

Anonymous said...

These aren't holiday stalls.
Chinese don't celebrate Christmas....and the majority of the "round eyes" don't shop Flushing anymore (except Macy's).

Let's see if these are still up for lunar new year....
unless they're legally non-compliant and get removed.


Anonymous said...

Those St. Barts shacks are on Park Ave. a MUCH WIDER thoroughfare...you idiot!

Anonymous said...

Those booths are too small for, "Massagee, massagee, massagee". Or are they?
Just place your ---- on the counter.

M. Nussbaum said...

Any "happy ending" stalls?

Anonymous said...

The 109th is so understaffed that it can't send an officer ONE BLOCK to enforce the law and have these shacks removed? Puhhhleassse!

The 109th is useless. Make a complaint to their main # and hear the arrogant, dismissive officers on the other end.

And forget community affairs — we had an issue in our neighborhood and the meat-head officer finally came to check after a million phone calls, said it would be taken care of and he would be around to monitor. And what was the end result? — we never heard or saw from him again, nor was the issue resolved.

Flushing should just cecede and let Beijing govern. A strong armed government may be what the lawless dirty shanty town needs.

Anonymous said...

"Petty quality of life issues"?
WE ARE TALKING ABOUT DANGEROUS CONDITIONS HERE!
Stop making excuses for the lazy 109th!
Everybody knows that this is one of the most corrupt precincts in NYC!
They change commanders like underwear...almost every 2 years.
That's why it's known among law enforcers as "the promotion precinct".
----------------------------------
And what do you want the 109 Precinct to do? Write summonses? Then you would be complaining that they are trying to meet their "quota". You want them to arrest the vendosr and confiscate their booths? Great, one arresting officer per vendor off the street vouchering all the property, taking up an entire tour, and getting a few hours overtme out of it. Even more cops out of service and not responding to radio jobs. Then what happens? The vendors are out of jail the next day latest, they get all their property back and are out selling that very day. But not before they pay a visit to their local ACLU and immigrant addvocacy group and drop a huge lawsuit on the arresting officer for "violating their civil rights". I think I would rather have the cops patrolling the neighborhood preventing violent crimes than dealing with this shit. You don't like it? That is what this city has become. Thank Bloomberg and his idiot liberal friends. They are the ones who created this monster, not the NYPD and not the 109 Precinct.

ForeverStudent said...

I take the q16 daily which turns on this corner. The corner is already a nightmare. But this is just another example of one of the many things ignored in flushing. Is there a bid? Is there anyone who actually gives a crap about flushing and the people who live there? It seems to me Bloomy only cared about buildings. Does anyone know where the bid office is? I would like to go meet/talk to the people in the office. I have lived here for 30 years and I can't believe how many rules are ignored.

Anonymous said...

Everybody knows that this is one of the most corrupt precincts in NYC!
----------------------------------
Your evidence? And please don't rehash an old story about their crime team. They really didn't get away with much. They were reported on by their fellow cops, investigated, arrested and sentenced to prison. The precinct was turned upside down, watched with magnifying glasses, and the CO and ICO were replaced. If you dump your garbage into the middle of the street does that make everyone else on your block slobs?

Anonymous said...

Yes I want the lazy cops at the 109th to walk down the street and enforce the law.

What a laughing stock the precinct is when huge red huts are illegally littered on the sidewalks across the block from the precinct.

And to the poster defending the 109th, the only "liberal" politically correct people are the do nothing officers pandering to the Asian community by turning a blind eye to everything.

Further, come up with better arguments that the police are stretched too thin. How pathetic are these officers.

The white community left in Flushing thinks the 109th is useless, and the Asians think they are pushovers — while the cops patrol around doing nothing. Useless.

droparade said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

You go to the library to read about diversity? LOL. Just step outside and take a good whiff.

Anonymous said...

How many words in your retort?
I stopped counting after one hundred.

It sounds like some cop sucker, or a corrupt cop, is going VERY FAR out of their way to defend the "sterling" reputation of 109th.

We must have struck quite a nerve here with their criticism!

If there was an Asian madam calling Officer X to pick up his payoff $$$$$, the response time could be counted in seconds!

Anonymous said...

Whew!
What a bunch guilty consciences there must be at the 109th PCT to have to resort to defending themselves so fiercely on Q.C.

We need our cops to protect us from serious crime. Agreed!

i.e.
My neighbor once called 911 stating that another neighbor was fighting with another neighbor. It was getting VERY heated. Blows were exchanged. One even picked up a rock.

The 109th never showed up.
My neighbor made peace with the fighting parties.

That was just ONE incident on my block that the 109th didn't respond to.

Maybe the next time I need to call 911 I'll say,"GUN"! That should bring a response!

Do your jobs. That's what you get paid for.
If you no longer like your job...then RESIGN!

Part of your job is checking out these red sheds!

Anonymous said...

Maybe internal affairs needs to be contacted.
if the 109th isn't up to snuff on this "petty" issue.

That's the ticket!
If internal affairs is brought in, the paperwork becomes mountainous!

And you know how much cops hate paperwork!

Anonymous said...

Is everyone taking this all in?

Well, WTF do you all intend to do about this public safety concern...CB#7, 109thPCT, FDNY, elected officials?

Z-z-z-z-z-z-z-z.
Wake up Councilman Koo! It's your turf!

Didn't you just take a walking tour of Flushing and exclaim how over crowded it is....that you can't pass easily on its congested narrow sidewalks?

DUH?
Please explain it to the councilman, James.

tired of the run around said...

Thank you Queens Crap!

In the past we have tried many times to work with our police, fire department, elected officials and community board with poor results to show for it.

Perhaps, shaming them on your blog might be the best way to get what we need from them!

You've gotten many residents of Queens good results!

Anonymous said...

Whew!
What a bunch guilty consciences there must be at the 109th PCT to have to resort to defending themselves so fiercely on Q.C.
---------------------------------
Oh yeah, God forbid someone actually has the audacity to speak up for cops. How many times are you going to post the same old anti-109 rant? And by the way what did the 109 collar you for that you have such a hard-on for them? Did they catch you in Kissena Park with your Roosevelt Ave tranny prostitute "girl"friend?

Anonymous said...

Putting up these businesses is total bullshit. On the news tonight they said that these people got legitimate permits - these people wouldn't know a legitimate permit for a business or home if they fell over it. Also, the news said that the board approved this. Of course because if all these people on the board are asian - they are going to vote its OK. I despise this neighborhood and if the 109 doesn't have a problem with this shit right across the street from them, something is definitely wrong with our police system. The shanty businesses should be demolished immediately.

Queens Crapper said...

Sorry I missed this report. I can't imagine that DOT issued permits for this, especially considering Peter Koo's opposition to the sidewalk crowding.

Anonymous said...

The 'board' - if you're talking about CB7 - is not all Asian at all. While I agree that they generally have no backbone, they wouldn't have had anything to do with this, in terms of approvals or disapprovals.

This seems like some bullshit pilot project that all of the city agencies have been told to stick their heads in the ground for.

It's a total disgrace and a serious public safety hazard!

Anonymous said...

"It's only a shanty in 'ol Shanty Town...it's roof is so slanty (no racial slur intended) it touches the ground".

These look like those "Hooverville" shacks that went up during the Great Depression.

M-m-m-m....smell that good hearty Mulligan stew!

Anonymous said...

I think we've got a PBA troll posting.

The Flushing Phantom said...

Maybe Peter Koo should do another Flushing walk about with the TV cameras running again....this time past these crappy looking pop-up shanties.

Ooops...
but would a Chinese-American councilman have the stones to take on this thorny issue and criticize his fellow countrymen?

Maybe it's better that he hides out in his Port Washington home for awhile, until it all blows over!

Anonymous said...

"ForeverStudent"...
the man who runs the BID is Chinese. These stalls contain Chinese businesses. Good luck!

Anonymous said...

By now the comments on QC have reached overwhelming proportions.

If any one can find Gene Kelty....drag him off of his bar stool and tell him to get cracking on this!

What a useless community board we have.

Go give them some work to do besides serving developers. Flood CB#7 with phone calls!

Don't just sit on it like they do!

Anonymous said...

Holiday fair stalls? My tookass!

"Walkin' through a winter wonderland"...of crud 'n crap...confusion and congestion!

Meanwhile 2 empty lots and many vacancies abound around the town.

The rotting former RKO Keith's Theater most aptly symbolizes Flushing's "great success".

When is Michael Nussbaum (Donald Manes' "bag man") going to come up with a Taiwanese investor for his front man Patrick Thompson to develop that site?



Anonymous said...

How ghetto looking!
Market week in Fujian province!

Is that salted fish,
or somebody didn't bathe this morning?

Anonymous said...

I agree with you that CB#7 had nothing to do with this.

They never have nothin' to do with nothin'....LOL!

Their votes are window dressing...non-binding....
purely advisory...in other words...it all means, BULLSHIT!

So why do we need community boards at all?

I guess its to drain tax money by providing patronage jobs for the Dem machine's "needy".

Anonymous said...

Ya wanna know da real truth, pilgim?

Flushing looks like a low class dump because NOBODY is on the same page. Nobody cooperates. There has been a real estate turf war going on there for 30 years!

You have a fragmented town where each little developer-war lord builds his own ego-castle.

Shit begets more shit, as one tries to outdo the other.

Anonymous said...

Chuck, you've got to be reading all of this.
Where do you stand, Mr. Apelian?

Oh, your printing company has all the holiday sales fliers contracts.

Anonymous said...

Seems like every other storefront on Union Street between Northern Blvd and the municipal lot has already closed. The (Korean-owned?) businesses have already deserted the area, since the AME construction in the parking lot has reduced the number of parking spaces for shoppers.

Anonymous said...

Macedonia AME Church has more than a moral a right to build their affordable housing units on Muni Lot #1.

Their property was SEIZED in the early 1950s through phony eminent domain proceedings in order to build the Bland Houses.

Of course Bland was built elsewhere.

The city just wanted to "relocate" that "Negro"
nabe away from the prime center of town...and so they did.

Now, restitution was finally made!
Macedonia AME got its long past due reparations!