Pancha

Pancha works at Clinton Fruit Market on 9th Avenue in Hell's Kitchen. There is a flower stand out front called Pascal's Flowers. The two businesses share the space. Pancha covers both.

She is 16 years old. She has been sitting in the same spot among the buckets and bouquets for as long as anyone can remember.

The West 47th Street Block Association nominated her for "Best Bodega Cat" in the city. The nomination said she was "truly a celebrity on this block with many admirers."

She did not win. A cat named Oreo from Flatbush took the title. But on 47th Street, nobody cares about Oreo.

Followers told us Pancha shows up on Google Street View four different times. We could only find two of them.

In one capture, a stranger is stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, leaning down to pet her. Google's car photographed the whole thing. The stranger does not know they are being recorded. Pancha does not care.

When she is not in her usual spot, the neighbors notice. They text each other. They check.

That is the kind of cat she is. The kind people keep track of.

We visited three times before we got our photos.

The first time, she was sleeping. Strict do-not-disturb policy. We left.

The second time, she was not there. Nobody knew where she went. We left again.

The third time, she had drawn a small crowd of school kids. They were taking turns petting her. We waited. They eventually moved on. She stayed exactly where she was.

She did not move for the camera. Did not need to. She has been photographed by Google's satellites. A couple of strangers with a camera is nothing.

Bodega Cats of New York comes out this fall.