Street vendor suing city, claims he's being targeted

PITTSBURGH — If you spend time in Pittsburgh's Oakland neighborhood, you've probably seen the man who has been running a street kiosk selling Pitt gear for nearly three decades.

But now, he's suing the city of Pittsburgh.

The apparel vendor claims his trucks are being targeted for parking on the street in Oakland at night.

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He's filed a lawsuit, alleging he's being targeted by a top city official.

"It's not about money, I just want to sell T-shirts on the corner," said vendor Charles Bonasorte.

His business is called The Pitt Stop, and when the weather is good, Bonasorte's Pitt apparel kiosk is a familiar sight in Oakland.

He told Channel 11 his livelihood is being unfairly targeted by the city of Pittsburgh.

"They passed this ordinance you're not able to park in a residential neighborhood and that's fair, but this isn't residential, it's a commercial zone," Bonasorte said.

After battling the city to park his box truck along Forbes Avenue at night without being ticketed, Bonasorte decided to sue.

"I hate to say it: there's other vendors and I'm the only one who got tickets," he said. "It's definitely personal."

Bonasorte told Channel 11 he named Guy Costa, the city of Pittsburgh's operations chief, in the lawsuit.

"He's not being singled out by me, I'm only doing my job," Costa said. "It's just not him, there are many  many people ... that have been issued citations."

The city said the ordinance has been updated and applies to commercial, not just residential neighborhoods, but Bonasorte insists he has a case and says he will prove it in court.

Cox Media Group