Now Why Didn’t We Think of That?

Do Not Open–Thanks by Vidiot on Flickr.

The next time you just can’t seem to find that little shop you’ve heard about or can’t figure out whether you’re heading north or south, you can thank the latest trend in store-front design–leaving off the address number. Yes, we have all seen it before and wondered why a business wouldn’t want to make itself easily locatable. Well, now we have the answer: garbage.

We learn that the issue of omitting address numbers on store-front businesses seems to be getting progressively worse in the central Bronx, and many think it is because owners are trying to dodge $300 tickets from the Sanitation Department for things like litter and improper disposals.

Vincent Prezioso, president of the Northeast Bronx Association pretty much sums it up:

“I’m sure there are some people who are too lazy, and there are other people who are very devious, thinking, ‘How will they know where I live if I don’t have any numbers on the door?’ If they think that if there’s no door number they won’t get tickets, they’re very naïve.”

Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrión thinks the practice is devious enough to try and stop it (it also violates the city’s Administrative Code) and:

To address the problem, Mr. Carrión has said that if district managers report missing or incorrect numbers to his Topographical Bureau, the bureau will notify the landlords — the only recourse for enforcement.

By the way, it’s a little surprising but just plain great that borough presidents’ offices have their own topographical bureaus (AllWaysNY has highlighted the Queens bureau, which has got to have quite a job with the unique street/address numbering system in the borough).