Turf War Among Ice Cream Trucks In Midtown Manhattan

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- There's a battle heating up in Manhattan as a turf war is brewing among the ice cream trucks of Midtown.

CBS2's Esha Ray reported that Mister Softee and New York Ice Cream have been going at it for the past three years.

Court documents reveal the battle started in 2013 with Dimitrios Tsirkos, a veteran franchise owner at Mister Softee who operated over a dozen ice cream trucks around the city. At some point, Tsirkos left Mister Softee and started his own calling it Master Softee.

Mister Softee then filed a trademark infringement lawsuit, forcing Tsirkos to change his name to New York Ice Cream.

However, even after winning in the courts, Mister Softee is losing in one of the busiest places in the city – Midtown Manhattan.

"You know this is a business and when you have a business, there is a competition and this is what happens," New York Ice Cream vendor Jamal El-Maji said.

According to Mister Softee vice president Jim Conway, who did not want to publicly comment for this story, drivers won't park their trucks between 34th and 60th Streets for fear of retaliation.

A Mister Softee vendor on 18th Street said he hasn't heard of any violence, but is not worried about losing business.

"New York is too big and New York is intelligent," Roger Gordillo said. "They know Mister Softee is the best in New York."

Ice cream trucks can park wherever they want as long as they have a permit from the city, but if people try looking for a Mister Softee truck in Midtown, they won't have much luck.

"I don't believe in ice cream monopoly. I think ice cream should be everywhere," Harlem resident Daryl Wout said. "Ice cream is for the people, so I don't agree with that."

If the turf war continues, a Midtown monopoly could mean a higher price for the next cup or cone.

New York Ice Cream has yet to comment on the story.