Food vendors across the Eastside and greater Los Angeles County marked wins this week after the Board of Supervisors voted to pass two ordinances and a motion Tuesday to better support the small business owners.
No-vending zones, like those areas outside of places like Dodger Stadium, Exposition Park, Hollywood Walk of Fame, or Cypto.com Arena, were eliminated by a unanimous 15-0 vote Tuesday, giving street vendors free rein to sell outside of some of Los Angeles’ most popular tourist attractions.
A motion by Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis, who represents Boyle Heights, East Los Angeles, and other cities in the County’s 1st District, also reduced vendor health permit fees.
“Across my district, in vending hubs like East Los Angeles, and increasingly across the San Gabriel Valley, sidewalk vendors are becoming an ever-increasing presence, providing access to food spanning diverse cultures,” said Supervisor Solis in a press release.
Permits range from $300 for those selling packaged foods to more than $1100 for those preparing and selling hot items. The approved motion makes low-income vendors in unincorporated county areas eligible for a 75% subsidy.
To be eligible for the subsidies, vendors must be first-time applicants who live or sell in unincorporated LA County cities like City Terrace and East LA, have a net income of less than $50,000 annually, and complete a Department of Economic Opportunity-led workshop in their Supervisorial District.
Inclusive Action, a Boyle Heights-based non-profit, has fought for vendor representation and protections since 2008 and began the LA Street Vendor Campaign in 2011. Estefanía López Pérez, the Senior Policy Associate, said that with the new ordinances, vendors have more ways to formalize their businesses.
“The ordinance creates a process for vendors to register their business and then also provides regulations for things like hours of operation for vending, distancing requirements, ADA compliance and regulations,” López Pérez said.
In 2018, SB 946, led by the Department of Economic Opportunity, put clear parameters regarding when, where, and how vendors could sell on sidewalks in LA County. Under SB 972, passed in 2022, street vendors were issued new standards for selling and different levels of permit fees.
In conjunction with the two laws, Tuesday’s vote further validates the business practices of thousands of vendors across Los Angeles City and County. López Pérez recognized that street vendors and advocacy groups had waited more than five years for a new ordinance.
“Through a lot of advocacy from the partners and vendors themselves, there finally was this momentum to actually put something on the table,” López Pérez said. “Both of these [laws] aligned and made way for, finally, the creation of an ordinance for a sidewalk vending program in the unincorporated areas of LA County.”
The new ordinance does not reimburse those who’ve paid for citations for selling in these no-vending zones in the past, something an incoming lawsuit against the county hopes to change.
The Department of Public Health and the Department of Economic Opportunity’s County ordinances go into effect in 30 days, while the city ordinance will take effect in 31-40 days.
A street vendor’s take
Daniel Velez, a long-time fruit vendor, recalls many bad experiences dealing with the city and police when he started selling on East LA streets in the early 2000s.
“They would come to see that I was selling without a permit and throw out all of my things on the floor,” said the 41-year-old while serving a plate of fruit to a local resident. “It became such a constant issue that I would barely make any money. I decided to work on getting a permit, and even though things have been better on that front, there are still issues we face.”
While happy that the city has voted to end no-vending zones, he believes it’s more important for city officials to work towards addressing the stigma and hate many street vendors face.
“If there’s trash in the area around me, even if it’s not mine, I always make sure to pick it up because if I don’t, people think negatively of me and people like me,” said Velez. “It’s great that progress is happening, but there’s still more issues that need addressing.”
I love that he cleans at the end of the day and cleans other trash. What I dislike about the vendors is that they tend to sell in the corners where there is a parking lot. This takes parking away from other businesses.