City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: JULY 19, 2022 FROM: COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WARDS: ALL DEPARTMENT SUBJECT: SIDEWALK VENDING UPDATE
ISSUE:
Receive a six-month update on the educational and enforcement efforts related to the City’s new Sidewalk Vending Ordinance – RMC 5.38 as requested by the City Council.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That the City Council receive and file an update on education and enforcement efforts related to the City’s Sidewalk Vending Ordinance BACKGROUND:
Senate Bill (SB 946) became effective on January 1, 2019, as Government Code sections 51036 – 51039. This law decriminalized sidewalk vending with the intent to promote entrepreneurship and economic development opportunities for low-income and immigrant communities. The general rule of SB 946 is that any restriction on a sidewalk vendor must be directly related to an objective health, safety, or welfare concern.
The City’s existing laws related to sidewalk vending conflicted with a number of provisions of SB 946. The City amended its sidewalk vending ordinance to comply with state law and on December 7, 2021, adopted amendments to RMC Chapter 5.38 (Attachment 1), bringing the municipal code into compliance with state law. At the time these amendments were adopted, City Council also asked that staff present an update on education and enforcement efforts six months after the law became effective on January 7, 2022.
DISCUSSION:
IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY
Since RMC 5.38 included numerous substantive changes, the Code Enforcement Division (Division) developed a careful approach to applying this new law that included community and stakeholder engagement, an initial public education and outreach phase, creation of informational brochures in both English and Spanish (Attachment 2-3), and more focused enforcement on habitual offenders and problem locations.
The Division also recognized the need to build a team of Code Enforcement staff that was dedicated primarily to addressing issues arising out of sidewalk vending proactively and in “real time” at the time a complaint is received based on the nature of the activity. This team also needed to work later into the evening hours when the majority of sidewalk vending activity took place, as well as on the weekends.
The Code Enforcement Division assigned one Senior Code Enforcement Officer and one Code Enforcement Officer to this detail and is currently recruiting for an additional officer for this assignment. Members of this specialized team are bilingual English/Spanish to facilitate better communication with the community. Current hours of operation are Wednesday through Saturday, and the team works as late as 2:00 A.M., depending on activity levels. Upon buildout, this team will also be assigned to work 7 days/week. Regular Code Enforcement staff is available to respond to and address sidewalk vending concerns on those days that the Sidewalk Vending Team is not on duty. It should also be noted that this same team is responsible for application and enforcement of the City’s food truck/mobile vending ordinance.
The Division employs several different enforcement methods and under normal circumstances, uses an escalating enforcement methodology beginning with education and verbal warnings, followed by additional education attempts, written Notices of Violation, and finally, Administrative Citations/Fines and the summary abatement of hazardous, unpermitted food items as authorized by the Riverside Municipal Code governing food facilities:
6.08.040 - Permits. No person shall operate a food facility without holding a valid permit issued by the Department of Environmental Health.
6.08.060 - Public nuisance declaration. In addition, any violation of this chapter is hereby deemed to be public health nuisance and may be abated by the Enforcement Officer, irrespective of any other remedy hereinabove provided.
In addition to regular daily reactive and proactive education and enforcement efforts by dedicated Division staff, the Team continues to regularly coordinate and partner with members of the Riverside County Dept. of Environmental Health, and the Riverside Police Department for joint operations focusing on the downtown entertainment district, and other points throughout Riverside where the City is experiencing a high number of complaints or particularly resistant unpermitted sidewalk vendors. During these details, the Police provide security for City and County staff while the Division and County Health Inspectors concentrate on municipal code education, enforcement, and food safety/sanitation.
Sidewalk vending activity is tracked via the Division’s case management system as well as secondarily by the Sidewalk Vendor Enforcement Team to identify “hot spots,” trends, successes, etc.
STATISTICS
As of the writing of this report, the City of Riverside Business Licensing Division has recorded 26 active business licenses and 77 vendor permits associated with those business licenses for sidewalk vendors (Attachment 4). There are five (5) businesses selling ice cream, seven (7) distributing cell phones, three (3) selling fruits, one (1) selling hot dogs, three (3) selling flowers, five (5) selling toys, one (1) offering Medi-care enrollment, and one (1) selling snacks.
The following metrics reflect the sidewalk vending education and enforcement activity since the adoption and implementation of the City’s sidewalk vending ordinance.
Table 1 - Number of complaints via 311 by Ward
WARD
NUMBER OF CALLS
Ward 1
12 Ward 2
8 Ward 3
20 Ward 4
17 Ward 5
15 Ward 6
34 Ward 7
13 Total
119
The following summarizes the contacts and citations to date:
Total number of contacts with sidewalk vendors: 403
Number of licensed/permitted vendors contacted: 21
Number of educational flyers/outreach contacts: 354
Number of Administrative Citations issued: 52
The number of complaints via 311 shown above only represents actual complaints from the public. The sidewalk vendor team also operates proactively throughout the City to identify and contact sidewalk vendors.
OBSERVATIONS AND CHALLENGES
The majority of sidewalk vendor staff encounters are unpermitted/unlicensed stationary taco vendors that set up a larger scale cooking and serving area with portable canopy, lighting, etc. These vendors have primarily been from Los Angeles. There has been very limited “pushcart” vending activity that has generated complaints. Staff has observed that many of the out of area vendors are connected to one or several operators who drop them off in several locations in the City each night. These vendors are also adapting to City Enforcement efforts by attempting to identify Code Enforcement work schedules and only keeping a very limited supply of food at their actual site to mitigate the County Health Department or City confiscating their perishable food. Staff believes there is a mobile “food supply” truck that restocks each location periodically throughout their work period each night.
Staff has also observed that the same vendors continue to return night after night even after having received multiple informational brochures, verbal warnings, written warnings, and citations. There have been three separate incidents in which people associated with the sidewalk vendors have followed Code Enforcement staff in their vehicles, presumably to understand the City’s enforcement patterns. The Police Department was able to intervene and assist in all cases.
Public reaction to Code Enforcement staff activity at these sites has been mostly positive with most community members gaining an understanding of the City’s mission to educate first and provide an opportunity for the sidewalk vendors to legalize and permit their operations. During these contacts, City Staff makes every effort to not only educate the business operators, but their customers as well.
CASE EXAMPLES
The following examples represent several cases involving complaints of unpermitted sidewalk vendors that have been resolved. They support how the Division’s measured approach to education, followed by enforcement, can be successful in gaining compliance. Some of these cases can also be considered “success stories” insofar as the sidewalk vendors have taken the appropriate steps to legalize their operations and obtain the appropriate permits and licenses. Ultimately, the goal of the program is to facilitate a safe and inclusive environment for legitimate entrepreneurs to obtain the required permits and approvals and conduct business in compliance with the City’s standards. 3596 Van Buren - Tire Shop
Complaint: Unpermitted stationary taco vendor setting up on private property in the evenings.
Resolution: After numerous contacts and notices to the vendor and property owner, the vendor eventually legalized his operation by transitioning to a “food truck”, obtaining all necessary permits, and operating in compliance with all applicable food truck guidelines. However, it should also be noted that this same operator has begun setting up unpermitted stationary taco stands at additional locations. 5261 Arlington - Vacant Sears lot
Complaint: Numerous unpermitted stationary taco vendors setting up in the parking lot in the evenings and dumping associated cooking oils/grease into storm drain.
Resolution: After numerous attempts to educate and warn vendors, staff began issuing administrative citations and the Health Department confiscated unsanitary food. The unpermitted vendors ceased operating at this location. In addition, staff learned that this operator has since obtained required County Health permits and are in the process of obtaining City Licenses to operate a food truck. 8616 California - Maxi Foods lot
Complaint: Numerous unpermitted stationary taco vendors and churro vendors setting up on private property in the evenings.
Resolution: After numerous attempts to educate and warn vendors, staff began issuing administrative citations and the Health Dept confiscated unsanitary food. The unpermitted vendors ceased operating at this location.
Collette and Buchanan
Complaint: Unpermitted stationary fruit vendor setting up on public right of way creating traffic hazard for both motorists and pedestrians.
Resolution: Numerous attempts to educate and warn vendors were made. As of June 9, 2022, no vendors have been observed at the location. Staff continues to monitor this location for compliance.
Chicago and University - cell phone vendors
Complaint: Numerous unpermitted cell phone vendors setting up on sidewalk blocking public right of way and creating trash on sidewalk and private property.
Resolution: Staff contacted 33 vendors over the course of several weeks at the location and issued seven (7) Administrative Citations for violations including not having a vendor permit and/or business license, blocking the sidewalk, setting up within 15 feet of fire hydrant, using loudspeaker, setting up multiple banners, and creating trash. Since enforcement began, all vendors contacted at the location have obtained a vendor permit and business license. Staff continues to monitor this location and enforcement efforts are ongoing.
Iowa and Massachusetts
Compliant: Multiple complaints of taco vendor creating hazards for both vehicle and pedestrian traffic.
Resolution: As of the last inspection, the vendor has ceased operations at this location. In addition, the vendor contacted staff to advise that she has obtained required County Health permits and is seeking City licenses to operate a food truck. Staff continues to monitor this location for compliance.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT:
This item supports Strategic Priority 3 – Economic Opportunity, and specifically goal 3.1 - Facilitate partnerships and programs to develop, attract and retain innovative business sectors; goal 3.3 - Cultivate a business climate that welcomes innovation, entrepreneurship, and investment; and goal 3.4 - Collaborate with key partners to implement policies and programs that promote local business growth and ensure equitable opportunities for all.
The item aligns with each of the cross-cutting threads as follows:
Community Trust – This item has been vetted through numerous Committees with robust public comment. Two community roundtable meetings were held to solicit feedback from all stakeholders. Staff continues to engage community and team members on a regular basis regarding sidewalk vending. The community meetings were marketed via e-mail blasts to constituent groups and the Greater Riverside Chambers of Commerce, direct messages to advocacy groups, flyer distribution to the actual sidewalk vendors and via Council newsletters. Roundtable meetings and Committee Meetings were conducted in both English and Spanish.
Equity – This item is being undertaken to provide equitable entrepreneurship opportunities for segments of the business community that have been highly regulated and restricted. Sidewalk vending can be viewed as a cultural treasure in some communities and can serve as not only a means to provide income, but a means to deliver food to underserved or socio-economically disadvantaged segments of the community. Another often overlooked aspect of sidewalk vending is that not only does it open a pathway for new entrepreneurs, but it also creates opportunities for existing brick and mortar establishments to branch out and expand their business footprint. Spanish translation services have been provided throughout the meetings at the City Council sub-committee, workshops, and the City Council meeting.
Fiscal Responsibility – Increased sidewalk vending activity in the City of Riverside can potentially generate additional sales tax and permit fee revenue. In addition, it can potentially attract additional visitors to areas such as the Downtown Entertainment District by providing additional dining options, thereby further increasing sales tax revenue for area businesses.
Innovation – The “street food” culture is a growing trend in many progressive areas of the country. Providing a regulatory framework that encourages this entrepreneurship while still safeguarding the public’s health, safety and welfare would place Riverside among those model cities that are beginning to incorporate this “street food” culture into their downtowns.
Sustainability & Resiliency – Expanding the concept of sidewalk vending in Riverside would meet the needs of certain segments of the community and if properly approached, maintain the health and safety of the community. Sidewalk vending can be used as a means to bring prosperity and vibrance to a City as well as a vehicle to deliver dining options to underserved areas and provide a means of income to new entrepreneurs during periods of economic downturn.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no fiscal impact associated with this report.
Prepared by: Chris Christopoulos, Acting Community & Economic Development Director Certified as to
availability of funds: Kristie Thomas, Assistant Chief Financial Officer Approved by: Rafael Guzman, Assistant City Manager
Approved as to form: Phaedra A. Norton, City Attorney
Attachments:
Riverside Municipal Code 5.38
Informational Flyer – English
Informational Flyer – Spanish
List of vendor permits
Presentation
Sidewalk Vending ● Page 3