The Emerald Mile sign on McLean Avenue, before it was vandalized. Twitter/MeetMeonMcLean

Locals are outraged after a sign that welcomes people to Yonkers, NY's’ “Emerald Mile” was vandalized by a group of people early Sunday morning at the intersection of McLean and Kimball avenues.

Surveillance footage reveals that the vandals smashed the sign owned by a McLean Avenue Merchants’ Association, which had cost them around $3,000. Crime, according many business owners and residents in the area, has seen an increase as of late.

The McLean Avenue Facebook page posted a picture of the broken sign on Sunday, stating that, “The McLean Merchants Association is in touch with the Yonkers City Police Department.” As of now, the association plans on having a new sign put in place, but vows that the criminals who did this will be found and brought to justice.

The post went on to say that this was no accident as pieces of the sign were found further down the street. Yonkers police are investigating the incident and are in the process of reviewing all the available surveillance footage at the scene according to Westchester’s News 12.

“Car break-ins; we get a lot of that lately. Those lime bikes, they tend to disappear over the bridge or into Mount Vernon,” said local resident R.J. Puma about the rise in crime in the area.

McLean Avenue has a proudly Irish population and history, with Irish restaurants, pubs, and stores aplenty. Its surrounding area and into Woodlawn is often described and New York's Little Ireland.  

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