There's nothing that necessitates a drink more than a trip to Penn Station, but the owners of bars in and around the transit hub say homeless people are ruining business with their panhandling. During a Midtown South Precinct Community Council meeting Thursday night, business owners called for a crackdown on beggars, some of which come up with elaborate, long running schemes to garner sympathy. Then again, the homeless people do provide a nice scapegoat; without them, customers will have to face the fact that they're just drinking in the Penn Station T.G.I. Friday's.
Blarney Stone owner Andrew Impagliazzo says, "They aggravate everyone, you push them away and they come back. It's like the tide." He describes one "regular" who alternates between using a wheelchair, fake crutches and an oxygen mask—which isn't even connected to a tank—to beg for change. One Post commenter mentions "a woman who claims to be homeless and pregnant. Trouble is, she's been telling people she's 'homeless and pregnant' for about 5 months." The NYPD reportedly has "an increased presence" in the area and is working on the problem...no, not that whole shameful huge spike in homelessness under Bloomberg's administration problem, or the failed Advantage program problem. The people-are-getting-uncomfortable problem!
