A coalition of LA street vendors marched down Hollywood Boulevard on Thursday on the very sidewalks where the City of Los Angeles no longer allows them to sell food.
Today, they announced they’re suing the city for setting up no-vending zones in eight of LA’s most popular areas.
“It did not matter that vendors are ready to comply with the local regulations to sell, vendors became persona non grata,” Sergio Jimenez, a community organizer, said.
In 2019, a state law went into effect legalizing street vending and allowing local governments to regulate sales.
Get top local stories in Southern California delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC LA's News Headlines newsletter.
Soon after, the City of LA amended its ordinance to prevent vending during events at the Hollywood Bowl or Dodger Stadium, or anytime at places like the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
“I’ve been ticketed myself and I’ve been told, I’m gonna remove you, whether you like it or not, and I’m going to be taking your things so I better not see you. So, I have to hide in a parking lot, like many of my co-workers do,” Christina, a street vendor, said.
Christina says she and other vendors just want to make a living and benefit from the heavy foot traffic without the constant threat of being cited.
Local
Get Los Angeles's latest local news on crime, entertainment, weather, schools, COVID, cost of living and more. Here's your go-to source for today's LA news.
Attorney Katie McKeon says the lawsuit targets the single reason the city won’t let them sell here — overcrowding on sidewalks.
“We were able to hold an entire press conference here and allow the regular pedestrian traffic here to go by with no issues, so trying to ban a sidewalk vending cart, which is significantly smaller than the setup that we had here today, just really doesn’t fly,” McKeon said.
The vendors say they don’t want to take business away from brick-and-mortar stores.
In fact, they say they just want to work in the most popular areas with legal permits so they’re suing the city to allow it.
“There’s still no legal cart. There’s no food permit to vend, like a mobile cart. There’s none of that. So it’s just harassment, tickets and that sort of thing, so why am I not given a shot?” Christina said.
