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No More "Shoeshining" in Central
Park
Come today, the Municipality of
San José will not permit "shoe
shining" in the Central and La
Merced park.
The Municipality met yesterday
with the shoe shiners to deliver
them the bad news, that they
cannot perform their services
anymore at the parks.
The decision is unilateral and
the shoe shiners have not had a
say in the matter. The
Municipality was clear in it's
intention to remove any shoe
shiner who does not comply with
their request. The Municipality
said it will confiscate any shoe
shiner's equipment if they have
to.
The shoe shiners are legendary
at the two parks, offering
services for as long as anyone
can remember. At the corner of
Calle Central and Avenida
Segunda, in front of the
Catedral Metropolitana, there
are at least a dozen or more
shoe shiners during the day,
offering from a great to not so
great shoeshine. Many have their
regular customers.
The shoe shiners say they have
permission to work in the park
and that last year, with the
help of the government, they
were donated modern chairs from
a private company, that helped
them with a better public image
in providing their services.
In 1989 the park was closed for
remodeling and the shoe shiners
say they got a letter from San
José mayor Johnny Araya that
they could return once the work
was complete, which then needed
an appeal to the Constitutional
Court to force the Municipality
to live up to it's commitment.
The shoe shiners are now again
appealing to the Constitutional
Court to stay.
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