Passersby might barely notice the handful of food vendors along Fifth Ave. in Bay Ridge, but local businesses are feeling their presence in a big way.
Saying they're fed up with unfair competition, littering and noise, restaurants are asking the city to ban the increasingly popular vendors from sidewalks in the neighborhood's Business Improvement District.
"I have to pay $160,000 a year in rent, $6,000 a week in employee taxes, insurance," said Dogan Karakas, 43, of Bay Ridge, the owner of The Brooklyn Kebab Factory at 86th St. and Fourth Ave.
"And they're selling the same food, they sell it cheap, and don't have to pay any of those things. How is it fair?"
Selling gyros, kebabs and falafel for just $3 to $5 a pop, the carts are undeniably siphoning business away from the many nearby traditional restaurants.
But Samar Abdol, 23, of Astoria, Queens, who operates one of the silver carts at the corner of 86th St. and Fifth Ave., said the vendors are just doing business.
"We sell good food. That's why people like it," he said, adding, "It's not us who steals their business. Everyone's business is slow these days."
And hungry Bay Ridge residents say they're happy for the variety.
"This place is the best thing to happen to this corner in a long time," said Frank Rizzo, 35, of Staten Island, as he munched on chicken salad he bought from a cart.
"If these other businesses have a problem with it, it's because these guys have reasonable prices and the food is good."
Local business owners, though, say it's not that simple.
Burger King owner Jay Syed, 56, said not only has he lost 20% of his business since the carts cropped up last summer, but he also believes the vendors are polluting the streets and attracting rodents.
In an April letter to Mayor Bloomberg, Syed wrote: "We have the right to grease-free streets and need your help to save our sidewalks and our health."
The Business Improvement District members took their concerns to Community Board 10, which in turn sent a letter last week to the city's Small Business Services Department. They noted that general vending of clothing and other items is prohibited in the area, and contended that food vending should be banned, too.
"We are evaluating the concerns being raised in the community, and we will address these issues with the small businesses," said Small Business Services Department spokeswoman Laura Postiglione.
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