A meeting between second-hand vendors and the Town of Colonie was held two weeks ago, April 13, on the proposed Second Hand Law, and those involved said it went very well. However, the owners of Play It Again Sports, who have been outspoken critics of the proposal, said they were unaware that a meeting was even held.
Dottie Vonk, who owns Play It Again Sports with her husband, Steve, said she and her husband had not been contacted about the meeting between the merchants and the police department, even though they made it clear they wanted to be a part of the discussion.
We were not told, she said, adding that they had been away from April 5-15 but were checking voicemails and emails constantly. `I made it very clear I was interested in being involved. I made it clear that if this is going to affect us, we needed to be included.`
Heider said he was led to believe that the merchants did contact the owners of Play It Again Sports.
According to Town Attorney Mike Magguilli, the meeting was organized by the merchants, but he said the town would be willing to meet with the Vonks separately.
`We let the merchants themselves decide who would be on the committee,` Magguilli said. `We couldn’t force people to meet with us.`
`I think the meeting went fantastic,` said Martin Finkle, owner of Finkle Jewelers. `They’re [the town] is willing to work with us. Now we’re just trying to figure it all out. The chief [Steve Heider] and everyone in attendance were more than accommodating to us.`
The meeting was held to establish the ground rules and see what questions might arise from the law, which would require merchants to keep detailed records of the sale of second-hand goods.
Finkle said he understands the need for the second-hand law to keep residents safe and help recover stolen property.
`They’re trying to protect the people in the town, and that’s what a merchant, like me, wanted,` he said. `You will get with some merchants that they don’t want to accept they have an issue, and that it has to be resolved.`
Heider said that he is doing everything he can to make the law workable for all the merchants. Before the public hearing that took place on March 25, he said he asked the board not to vote on the law.
`We have tried to minimize some stuff in the law so we’re trying not to overburden the merchant,` he said. `I don’t want to make an unworkable law.`
Heider said he understands that there will be more work involved for the merchants under the new law, but it will ultimately be a valuable tool in recovering stolen property. Sending the reports electronically is something Heider said would be acceptable.
Some of the jewelers suggested that instead of a written record of the items received, a photo of could be sent to the department, a solution Heider said would not work because it would be hard to process the photo between departments.
`I think the happiness lies somewhere in between everything,` he said. `We don’t want them to hire extra people or make them do extra work. We think they’re doing a lot of what we asked already. So, we’re going to be much more proactive when forwarding them what we have so they can do a better job of looking at what has been stolen.`
The department will fax a list of reported stolen property to all of the dealers by 9 a.m. each morning.
One issue that all of those in attendance had with the law was it appeared to require that all employees have a license as a merchant. Magguilli said that is not the case, and that only the business would have to have a license.
`It could be drafted better if it gives confusion,` he said. `If we have to, we’ll tweak it and have it changed.`
The law proposed by the town has taken bits from various other towns in the state, including Albany, Schenectady and Utica. Heider said the department is still going through the law and to see what needs to be changed.
Heider said the department has tried to be accommodating to Play It Again Sports, a used sports equipment retailer, by setting a minimum dollar amount on items required to report.
`We want to do that so it can be useful to us and him [Steve Vonk],` Heider said.
The Vonks have been vocal opponents of the proposed law, saying it puts an undue burden on their small business, which deals in property that, unlike jewelry, is rarely stolen.
According to police records of stolen items from homes and businesses in the town between January 2010 and Wednesday, April 20, there have been just four instances of sports equipment being reported stolen, compared to 156 items of jewelry.
`I think that right there speaks volumes to what we’re talking about,` Dottie Vonk said.
Heider, however, said the fact that there were cases of stolen sporting equipment means Play It Again should be included in the law.
There were nearly 20 entries where bikes were reported stolen, but Vonk said they only accept bikes through consignment, which means the seller must have his or her driver’s licenses.
Vonk said customers have expressed concern about the law, and she has even put a petition together protesting it.
`Eighty-one people have signed it,` she said. `They’re really shocked we’re being included in this.`
Heider said this is a law that needs to be put in place. He understand that not everyone is going to agree on it, but said it will hopefully help prevent the sale of stolen goods.
`Business people have to realize they are innocently a part of the problem,` he said. `And this can help them become a part of the solution.`
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