Hundreds of delivery drivers hanging outside East Village mosque overwhelming locals, forcing businesses to close

Hundreds of Muslim delivery drivers who congregate outside an East Village mosque have transformed the area into a noisy, violent, trash-strewn junkyard while driving businesses and residents out, fed-up locals said.At least three businesses near the Islamic Council of America Madina Mosque on First Avenue and East 11th Street have shut down in recent months, as longtime residents say the city has ignored their cries for help.The Post witnessed no less than 100 deliverymen last week pouring in and out of the mosque, with hundreds of electric bicycles piled along the curb, fouling the tony neighborhood where a three-bedroom townhouse just sold for $14.8 million.“I lived on that block for 13 years, it was very, very different,” said Francisco, 40, who moved to Stuytown in October with his 2-year-old child and wife because of the chaos.

“The block itself changed incredibly since the second those guys came in.”The city’s second oldest mosque operated for decades without incident, but things began to change about two years ago.Residents described a perfect storm of a surge in migrants, the city’s installation of bike corrals on the block, and the ever-growing popularity of delivery apps.The drivers, who are mostly migrants from Islamic African nations, flock to the house of worship, which is under renovaiton, five times a day for prayer.

But they also mill about near the side entrance, gab on their phones, scarf down food from a halal truck, and toss trash where they please — attracting a veritable army of rats, said locals.Two men even set up an al fresco barber shop offering fresh cuts and shaves.During the warmer months, as many as six barber chairs are active all day, locals said.

Some of the men also bathe outside.The chaos is especially acute during Ramadan, which this year ended on March 18.“It’s insanity..

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Its not fair to the residents who live there,” area landlord Christine Renzi, who estimated she’s lost six residential tenants an...

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Publisher: New York Post

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