When Parking Stands in the Way of Beauty… and Business
By Sophie Anderson and Grace Ryan
JACKSON HEIGHTS — The start and the end of the business day are the busiest times at Lemir Beauty Salon on Roosevelt Avenue in Jackson Heights. Those are the times when people are most likely to come in and get their hair cut or styled. But fewer customers have been coming in recent months because of Mayor de Blasio’s most recent efforts to reduce traffic, a program called the Clear Curbs Initiative.
The Clear Curbs Initiative dictates that cars are not allowed to park along designated streets from 7 a.m to 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. This includes Roosevelt Avenue, the main road running through Jackson Heights where Lemir Beauty Salon is located, as well as midtown Manhattan, and Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn.
Lemir Beauty Salon’s owner, Hugo Calle, says that business is down significantly as a result of the policy. Customers cannot pull up to the store or finding parking. “We’ve been trying to make them understand, the local politics, that it really affects us,” he says. Customers, he added, “get a ticket and cancel their appointment.”
Mr. Calle, 42, is not alone in his concerns. This initiative has caused public outcry from the community in Jackson Heights. At a rally on May 8, local businesses gathered to voice their disapproval. For these businesses, including Lemir Beauty Salon, the initiative has led directly to decreased revenue.
Mr. Calle did not give specific numbers on the decline, but in an interview with the local online news publication QNS, another business owner, King Hui, said that, “During the first two weeks [of the program], I noticed a 20 percent drop in revenue. Other businesses I’ve talked to have had a 30 percent or 40 percent drop. Everything’s a big screw up.”
A watches for sale behind a glass case in the jewelry section of Lemir Beauty Salon/Sophie Anderson
Lemir is two stores in one. Opposite a row of salon chairs and wall of hair products is a 10 foot tall glass-enclosed counter filled with all kinds of jewelry from necklaces to watches. This section appears to be an entirely different business, but perception is deceiving and “Angelo’s Jewelry” is technically the same business as “Lemir Beauty Salon”.
In 1994, at age 18, Mr. Calle came to the United States from Ecuador to “work and support my family.”
When Mr. Calle arrived in the U.S., he started working at Lemir Beauty, which was owned by a woman at the time. He said that he went to school for three years because “if I wanted to have a future in this country, it’s very important to go study.”
Seven years after Mr. Calle came to the United States, in 2001, the owner of the store decided that she wanted to sell the business. She sold it to Mr. Calle, and he has now owned it for 17 years.
Today, Lemir Beauty Salon has 12 employees and a set of loyal customers with the occasional tourist passing through. Most people come in to get their hair done and then are intrigued to buy the glittering jewelry.
In the United States, he has an established family with two brothers, a wife, two children, and three stepchildren. And of course, he also has his community and his store.
When asked about recent immigration policy changes as a result of the Trump Administration, Mr. Calle said that he agrees with some of them. “I mean, this is our second country and we came from all countries, we’ve gotta follow the laws, we’ve gotta follow the rules and if we break the law we cannot ask for something that we don’t belong to,” he said.
He clarified that he doesn’t agree with all of the policies, such as separating families, but he understands some of them.
These policies have also affected Mr. Calle’s business. According to the magazine The Politic, in Jackson Heights, 65 percent of the population is made up of immigrants. “People are afraid [of the Trump Administration]. They don’t want to spend the money. They are saving the money because they don’t know what’s gonna happen: later on or tomorrow,” Mr. Calle says. As people spend money less, Mr. Calle has lost business.
Mr. Calle says he hardly misses Ecuador. “Not at all. This is my second country so I am proud to be here.”
