On Cecil B. Moore Avenue between 19th and 20th streets sits a car wash unlike any other. Instead of high powered houses and powered brushes, this car wash includes the man power of four men using giant buckets of water, about two dozen bottles of cleaner and a little elbow grease.
“I’ve been doing this for about 20 years now,” Gregory Smalley, the man in charge of the car wash operation, said.
Smalley and his crew usually set up shop around 10 a.m. and stay open until about 7 p.m. or until the weather changes for
the worse as it did on Memorial Day. Smalley said he used to have his car wash on Oxford Street between 19th and 20th streets but
was harassed out of business by neighbors and police.
“They’re trying to stop me from making an honest living,” Smalley said. “This is a better location anyway.”
Smalley and his crew charge just five dollars for a hand car wash and provide chairs on the sidewalk for patrons to wait while their car is washed. Some days are better than others though, as the crew waited two hours in 90-degree weather for their first customer of the day.
By Christopher Campellone and Rachel Halkias
Group 13: North Central
No comments:
Post a Comment