A new pilot program introduced in the City Council aims to provide licenses for street vendors, offering dozens of licenses to those who have been operating without one.

One vendor on Fordham Road says this opportunity could change his life.

Vicente Veintimilla has been selling comic books and coins from his stand on Fordham Road for nearly eight years.

However, for much of that time, he has been stuck on a waitlist, unable to secure a street vendor license due to limited availability.

Throughout the years, Veintimilla has been working to avoid hefty fines for operating without the required permit.

"Four thousand dollars," he said, referring to the fines he faces. Some of those fines can total up to thousands, a sum he says he cannot afford.

“I work with my wife,” he added.

He says he works to support his family, but the fines make it difficult to do that.

Bronx Councilmember Oswald Feliz, who introduced the street vendor pilot program in City Council, said that vendors work hard not only to support their families but also to enrich the neighborhoods they serve.

“They work hard not only to support their family, but also to support our neighborhoods. So, we have to do everything we possibly can to support them,” Feliz said.

The bill, if passed, will give approximately 100 street vendors the chance to obtain licenses to operate along the side streets of Fordham Road, between the Grand Concourse and Webster Avenue.

The program will prioritize vendors already working on Fordham Road, as well as those with ties to the neighborhood and those offering products not already available in the area.

“We want to give priority to vendors who are already on Fordham Road and vendors who bring products that we don’t already have,” Feliz said.

Vendors will pay $10 for a five-year license. Feliz hopes the program will pass in City Council soon, with licenses being issued to vendors by early next year. The aim is to give vendors peace of mind, allowing them to operate without the constant threat of fines.