Greenwich Village’s famed Strand Book Store drenched homeless people with sprinklers to stop them from sleeping under the shop’s signature red awning, employees said.
“Every morning, we would tell [vagrants] politely to leave so we can put our carts out. Some were nice about it, and some were nasty and unstable. It was an annoyance for us,” one worker told The Post.
“We had to chase them away to do our work. They also left their mess, food droppings and containers, out there,” he said.
Workers first hung a sign reading, “Warning: Sprinkler System Will Run Periodically From 10:30 PM-9:00 AM,” on a wall outside the shop, at East 12th Street and Broadway.
Sidewalk snoozers who failed to spot or heed the sign got a rude awakening — a blast of frigid water from above.
Homeless folks called the dousing cruel, noting it soaked their belongings and left them freezing.
“A couple of my friends got sprayed over there. It’s messed up. I don’t think it’s right,” Mike, a 44-year-old homeless man who sleeps nearby, told The Post.
“They should call the police. [There’s] no reason to do that. Most businesses call the police, and when the police come, people move. It’s kind of extreme.”
For years, homeless people have been using the sidewalk under the awning as an overnight sleeping spot.
The spray-down likely came from a sprinkler system rigged to the awning with a pipe and hose.
A Strand employee, who requested anonymity, called it the only effective way to remove vagrants.
“It’s good, and it’s bad, but I can’t think of any other way. It was a good idea to deter them, but then again, there is an element of heartlessness,” he admitted.
“These are people who need a place to shelter. I feel sorry for them. The fact that they are out there on the street . . . I’d hate for that to happen to me.”
The sign was removed Thursday night.
Shop manager Eddie Sutton could not be reached immediately for comment.
On its Web site, the Strand, which opened in 1927, calls itself a neighborhood institution.
“As we change and grow with the times, we will never lose sight of our roots — we are a community bookstore first and foremost,” it states.