BEACH BUMS!
Bye - bye Times Sq. — hello Coney Is.
Who knew Elmo and Mickey were migratory? Times Square’s costumed creeps are s l owly creeping southward — to Coney Island. A breakaway contingent of pesky panhandlers recently began establishing a new beachhead on the famed Boardwalk, explaining that there’s far less competition for tips than in Times Square.
Times Square’s costumed menaces have taken their pesky show on the road — to Coney Island.
The panhandlers, griping that they are being squeezed out of Midtown by competitors and cops, have washed up on the Brooklyn beach in search of new tourists to hustle.
A sweaty Elmo — among at least nine costumed beggars on the boardwalk Friday — said he had headed to the surf after getting fed up with Midtown.
“It’s not easy here because of the heat,” said the man, a nursing student from New Jersey who gave only his first name, Alex. “But in Times Square, there’s more competition.’’
Wearing a ski mask under his costume to soak up sweat, Alex said he makes $50 to $60 a day in either place, but prefers Coney Island because there’s less jockeying for tips.
He said more people tip in Coney Island than in Times Square but the individual amounts are smaller, usually a dollar.
The characters — who on Friday included a SpiderMan, a Minnie Mouse and an Olaf (of the movie “Frozen”) — use the same approach as they did in Manhattan. They take a picture with a child, then demand compensation from the parents.
A man dressed as the Batman villain Bane was yelling out his sales pitch Friday, shrieking, “Come on! Take a picture!”
Raphael Menjivar, 34, of Marine Park, Brooklyn, called the beggar invasion “a little creepy.”
“They are a little too eager to get attention,’’ he said. “But there are tourists and kids here, so they figure they can make some money.”
Locals said the characters only started showing up this year.
“They’re brand new. They just arrived,” said Alan King, a security guard at the Brooklyn Beach Shop. “I know they’re usually on 42nd Street. Maybe they got chased out and came here.”
Local merchants groused that it was just another freak show for the area, which has been cleaning up its image with new shops and rides and a food court.
“It’s a nuisance,” said a Brooklyn Beach Shop manager, who wouldn’t give his name. “This isn’t Times Square, and they’re hassling tourists. We pay taxes and rent. They don’t pay anything.”
Amos Wengler, 67, of Gravesend, Brooklyn, noted the arrests of characters in Manhattan on charges ranging from aggressive panhandling to sexual assault.
“I’ve heard about the trouble in Times Square, fights and stuff,’’ he said. “Maybe it’s a matter of time before problems happen.”