Merchants' Demise

In a last ditch effort to salvage something of value as their evictions near, the BTM merchants met with the Bronx Council delegation in hopes that the elected officials would be able to garner a more equitable relocation package. With the Velodrome site appearing unattainable because of EDC's willful disregard for the merchants' fate, the members of the association are trying to obtain a fair settlement so they can reconstitute their businesses elsewhere.

Making this a difficult task is the cavalier attitude of the developer who, sensing that it is under no duress, has no compelling reason to be fair. It is up to the delegation to somehow exact a fair deal from parties whose attitudes over the course of this two year ordeal have, up to this very moment, never been characterized by any degree of concern.

No one seems to care that we are talking about real people who have spent most of their entire adult lives working in the Bronx (under less than ideal conditions) and contributing to its economy by employing hundreds of Bronxites. All are sacrificial lambs on the altar of greed and political ambition. All in all, the shame of the Bronx, one that will reverberate four years from today.