Corona Plaza is Back! A Testament to the Power of Organizing

Wednesday, November 29th, was the first day back for the vendors of Corona Plaza, debuting the first of its kind “Community Vending Market” in New York City. It's the result of street vendors, primarily immigrant women, coming together to fight for their rightful place in our city.

In Corona, Queens, street vending became a lifeline for the local community to provide for their families and serve their neighborhood at the height of the pandemic. With the support of the Street Vendor Project, vendors banded together to form the Corona Plaza Street Vendors Association (AVA) and establish themselves as a valuable local stakeholder. Their leadership and valiant efforts are to be commended, as they rose above the classist, xenophobic rhetoric that permeated our city this summer to establish a historic model that can be replicated citywide.

In the words of Rosario Troncoso, AVA board president and member of SVP's Leadership Board, "We look forward to growing our collaboration with all involved in this project to make the market an example for the entire city, and to continue contributing to the economy of our neighborhood, Corona, Queens. This is just the beginning."

We are grateful to Queens Borough President Donovan Richards and Deputy Mayor Meera Joshi for championing Corona Plaza as a true model of local economic development, our partners Queens Economic Development Corporation, Congressmember Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, State Senator Jessica Ramos, Assemblymembers Catalina Cruz and Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas, alongside nearly 13,000 New Yorkers who signed petitions of support. This collaborative effort truly demonstrates the valuable role street vendors hold in our City. 

So come out and support the Corona Plaza Vendors' return! Stop by Corona Plaza for all your holiday shopping and to congratulate the vendors, anytime Wednesday - Sunday, 9 AM - 8 PM!

Timeline:

2020

• Documented NY, New York Immigrant Communities Hit Hardest by the COVID-19 Pandemic, Data Shows, 4/2/2020

• AP, Virus hits NYC hardest in a few working-class neighborhoods, 4/3/2020

• The New Republic, Immigrant Street Vendors Are Feeding Others to Feed Themselves During the Pandemic, 9/23/2020

• The City, Immigrant Corona Residents Lean on Relief Organizations — and Each Other, 9/8/2020

2021

• The City, Corona, Queens, Still Staggers to Recover From Corona, the Virus, 4/28/2021

• New York Focus, Unlicensed Street Vendors Fear Steep Fines as Enforcement Escalates, 7/21/2021

• Next City, Once Upon a Pandemic, NYC Stopped Antagonizing Street Vendors, 8/30/2021

2022

• Urban Omnibus, Market Share, 2/3/2022

• Queens Eagle, Corona Plaza Street Vendors Unite, 4/6/2022

• Righteous Eats, Corona Plaza Street Food Tour, 7/5/2022

• The City, Boiling Over With New Vendors, Corona Plaza Gets Organized, 8/1/2022

2023

• Queens Post, Hundreds Flock to Corona Plaza to Celebrate Three Kings Day, 1/29/2023

• Gothamist, 'A beacon of hope': 3 years after COVID-19 devastated Queens, Corona Plaza becomes bustling market, 3/22/2023

• Jackson Heights Post, Queens BP announces new trash initiative at Corona Plaza to help make vendor space more appealing to visitors, 3/29/2023

• The New York Times, The 100 Best Restaurants in New York City 2023, 4/17/2023

• The New York Times, The Flavors and Flair of Latin America, in One Queens Market, 4/25/2023

• Infatuation, Corona Plaza Review, 6/21/2023

• CBS New York, Vendors concerned over just how much longer they'll be allowed to operate in Corona Plaza, 6/22/2023

• ABC7, 'People don't have the money': Queens street vendor crackdown sparks outcry from community, 8/2/2023

• Gothamist, Corona Plaza vendors rally against City Hall's latest enforcement sweep, 8/2/2023

• The New York Times, They Make Some of New York’s Best Food. They Want the Right to Sell It. 8/5/2023

• Documented, Street Vendors Occupy Corona Plaza to Protest NYC Crackdown, 8/7/2023

• The City, Crackdown Continues at Corona Plaza, Where Vendors Had Thrived, 8/10/2023

• The City, Neighborhood Cop Plotted to Disrupt Corona Vendor Rally, Misconduct Complaint Alleges, 8/17/2023

• Gothamist, After street vendor crackdown, Corona Plaza market is a changed place, 9/13/2023

• Gothamist, NYC’s first soccer stadium hits a snag — the Queens borough president, 10/11/2023

• Spectrum News, City approves street vendors to come back to Corona Plaza, 11/28/2023

• Queens Eagle, Vendors to return to Corona Plaza, 11/29/2023