N.Y. vendor pays $362,201 for prime corner

NEW YORK, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- A hot dog vendor who paid $362, 201 for the food-vending rights for a New York corner says the prime position is worth every penny.

First-time vendor Pasang Sherpa said when the Metropolitan Museum of Art auctioned off the sales rights to two of its corners, he decided to pay an additional $81,701 to sell his hot dogs near its north-side entrance, the New York Post said Wednesday.

The cost increase, which represents thousands of hot dogs in Sherpa's world, was acceptable for the vendor despite only being 100 feet away from the site's south entrance.

"That (north) side is more busy," Sherpa said of his new sales locale at the tourism site that more than 5 million people visit each year.

The 50-year-old former jewelry salesman outbid his competitors by $65,000 a year to obtain the sales spot, but now faces troubles at the coveted spot.

The Post said the health department has failed to certify one of Sherpa's two hot dog carts and despite its eventual allure, his costly corner is currently mired in construction.