By Julie Shapiro
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
LOWER MANHATTAN — Trapped cars spun out in the streets and beleaguered pedestrians leaped over snow mounds almost 2 feet high in lower Manhattan Monday morning, in the wake of the season’s first major storm.
The 20 inches of snow that deluged downtown’s streets blew through the air, creating an ever-changing pattern of drifts that foiled those who were trying to clear paths.
"It’s been a mess," said Anthony Signorile, 47, a supervisor at New York City Transit, who was digging out his car on Park Place Monday morning. "Everything is stuck everywhere."
Many residents and commuters trod down the middle of the partially cleared streets, rather than brave the sidewalks. In some places, the drifts piled several feet high, while the chill wind swept other patches of land bare.
Enrique Gonzalez, a Midtown resident, struggled to chip away the tamped-down snow outside Giraldi Media on Murray Street.
"It's hard," he said. "I like the snow, but after a while it gets annoying."
At Zucker’s Bagels on Chambers Street, a long line wrapped around the counter, and workers said more than half the staff hadn’t been able to make it into work. Other shops, like Tribeca Treats on Reade Street, decided not to open at all.
The Downtown Alliance got an early 6 a.m. start on Monday to clear crosswalks and public plazas in the Financial District. The 20-man crew used shovels, snow blowers and 1,500 pounds of salt to attack the frozen mess.
Joe Timpone, the senior vice president of operations at the Alliance, said it was slow going, especially because the city plows often dumped snow right back into the freshly cleared crosswalks.
But he said the Alliance’s workers were in good spirits.
"Everyone likes a change of pace, and the challenge," Timpone said. "But if we got another snowfall on top of this, I don’t think anyone would be happy."
Downtown children were thrilled to wake up Monday morning to what could be the biggest snowfall of the season.
"It's awsome," said Thomas Rauffenbart, 14, a Chinatown resident who found an abandoned shopping cart and was pushing it through the snow with his friends in Battery Park City.
Clare Bacon, a TriBeCa resident, brought her three young children to Teardrop Park for a taste of the snow Monday afternoon.
"We love it," she said as they crawled up the snow mounds and rolled back down.
One local business owner who was smiling as he worked Monday morning was Lance Lappin, who has owned the Lance Lappin Salon on West Broadway for 26 years.
"It's fantastic," Lappin , 56, said as he cleared a path in front of his shop. "It's magic. It's a gift. It's a snow day — I feel like a kid."
