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Modeling Exec Says Vagrants Could Force Him From Fashion District

By Mary Johnson | January 23, 2012 6:58am
Vincent Massarelli, who runs his modeling agency and fashion production business out of 270 W. 36th Street, said the doorway of the building is a hot spot for a host of seedy characters.
Vincent Massarelli, who runs his modeling agency and fashion production business out of 270 W. 36th Street, said the doorway of the building is a hot spot for a host of seedy characters.
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DNAinfo/Mary Johnson

MIDTOWN — Almost every time Vincent Massarelli enters or leaves his office building, an unsavory surprise awaits him.

In the morning, it’s usually urine and empty liquor bottles — remnants, he said, of vagrants who hang out in the doorway of his modeling agency and fashion production company at 270 West 36th Street, near Eighth Avenue

But other times, it can be groups of people loitering in front of his store, blocking the doorway and even occasionally lashing out at him or his staff members.

“I’ve had employees get attacked, get hit,” said Massarelli, who signed a three-year lease for the space with his business partner, Duane Wardally, back in August.

A staffer got smacked in the rear end by a stranger hanging around near the entrance of the three-story commercial walkup, said Massarelli. One man threatened to get a gun and shoot Massarelli.

“I hate to leave the location because we’re trying to bring fashion back to the neighborhood,” explained Massarelli, who said his company designed the sets for season five of Top Chef.

“[But] I’m afraid someone’s going to get hurt.”

Desperate for help, Massarelli and Wardally brought their concerns to a meeting of the Midtown South Precinct Community Council last week, claiming the situation was getting so bad that they might soon be forced to bring in a private security team or abandon the neighborhood altogether.

Police at the meeting acknowledged that the area is problematic. Inspector Dennis DeQuatro said he knew the neighborhood had experienced a number of narcotics arrests, and the convenience store next door to Massarelli’s building was raided in recent weeks for selling cigarettes illegally.

There is also a methadone clinic and a needle exchange located in the surrounding blocks, Massarelli noted.

Massarelli told police he was speaking on behalf of his fellow tenant in the building, a nail salon called Coco Ruby that is run by a family of three.

The family did not attend the precinct meeting, but the next day the daughter, Julie Han, said that her father has to clean the building’s entranceway every morning with bleach because it reeks of urine.

“Sometimes I can’t even get in because someone’s at the door,” she added.

One day, a man entered the building, climbed to the second-floor salon and just stared at Han and her customers, she said. They were ultimately able to shoo the man away, but his presence made her and her customers nervous and frightened, Han added.

“We’re worried about our customers because they’re already scared,” she said.

For his part, Massarelli said he has lost two employees since he moved to the West 36th Street location, including the man who was hit on the backside. Both, he said, cited safety as a contributing factor to their departure.

Massarelli said he wants to hire up to 30 people, but he’s reluctant to add staff if conditions on the street remain the way they are now.

Inspector DeQuatro listened to Massarelli’s concerns and offered to work with him on ways to combat the problem.

“You absolutely have a right to be frustrated,” DeQuatro said at the meeting.

“You shouldn’t have to tolerate the things that you’ve described,” he added, promising to increase enforcement in the area. “But I’ll be honest with you, we’re not going to solve them overnight.”

Massarelli said he left the meeting feeling hopeful, although he remains skeptical that things will change.

“[The cops] know they have a problem,” Massarelli said.

“New York’s supposed to be the fashion capital, and I’m an advocate for bringing that back. But look what I’m going through,” he added.

“When I leave here at night, I’m scared to death.”