Ending The City of LA’s Unlawful and Discriminatory Street Vending Restrictions
For generations, sidewalk vending has been an integral part of the cultural and economic fabric of the City of Los Angeles and the State of California. Recognizing the vital role that street vending plays in our communities, the State of California enshrined statewide protections for street vendors with the passage of the “Safe Sidewalk Vending Act” (SB 946) in 2018. This law legalizes sidewalk vending statewide and sets mandatory standards for local government regulation of vending—limiting restrictions unless they are directly required to safeguard objective health, safety, or welfare concerns, and preventing municipalities from enacting vending regulations based solely on constituent complaints or economic animus.
When Los Angeles passed its Sidewalk Vending Ordinance in November 2018—legalizing and regulating sidewalk vending throughout the City—it also carved out seven “no-vending” zones, covering popular destinations like the Hollywood Walk of Fame, LA Live, and Universal Studios. The City said these prohibitions were put in place to prevent “overcrowding on sidewalks, which results in pedestrians walking in the streets;” however, the City failed to identify any facts, data, or documentation to support this assertion. The City also created exclusionary vending bans across the city near swap meets, farmers’ markets, schools, and temporary events.
The impact of these discriminatory bans on street vendors was harmful. Vendors whose livelihoods relied on the bustling foot traffic of popular destinations like the Hollywood Walk of Fame became targets of increased and aggressive enforcement by the Bureau of Street Services (StreetsLA), the agency responsible for enforcing the City’s Sidewalk Vending Ordinance.
In December 2022, two street vendors and three community empowerment groups filed a lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles challenging its widespread and arbitrary vending restrictions as violations of state law SB 946. Additionally, the lawsuit highlighted that the City’s outdoor dining regulations encourage brick-and-mortar stores to occupy wide swaths of the sidewalk in the exact locations where sidewalk vending is prohibited—differential treatment by the City that violates federal and state constitutional guarantees.
Update: February 6, 2024—In a unanimous vote, the City of Los Angeles passed a motion to amend its Sidewalk Vending Ordinance to eliminate seven no-vending zones, acknowledging the unlawful nature of the policy. The City’s action comes as a direct result of a lawsuit filed by sidewalk vendors. Despite this victory, vendors vowed to move forward with their lawsuit, citing the need for full repeal of all of the City’s exclusionary and arbitrary regulations and to address hundreds of citations issued to vendors in these areas.
Update: July 17, 2024—Street vendors and organizational plaintiffs secured a groundbreaking settlement with the City of Los Angeles, resolving their lawsuit that challenged the City’s widespread and arbitrary vending restrictions as violations of state law. The settlement repeals exclusionary vending bans across the city near swap meets, farmers’ markets, schools, and temporary events; cancels all citations issued for vending in the repealed exclusionary zones; and provides full refunds to vendors for any fines paid. These gains build on previous progress catalyzed by the vendors’ lawsuit, including the City’s repeal of seven blanket no-vending zones earlier this year and City Council motions aimed at bringing vendors into the policymaking process and transforming the City’s approach to enforcing vending regulations.
Court
Superior Court of The State of California, County of Los Angeles
Status
Settled
Case No.
22STCP04289
Filed
12/07/2022
Case Developments and Key Developments
Street Vendors Secure Settlement with City of Los Angeles
Street vendors and organizational plaintiffs secured a groundbreaking settlement with the City of Los Angeles, resolving their lawsuit that challenged the City’s widespread and arbitrary vending restrictions as violations of state law. While the settlement is finalized, it still needs to be formally approved by the City Council and Mayor, which plaintiffs expect will happen when the Council returns from recess in August.
Documents
City of L.A. Eliminates No-Vending Zones
The City of Los Angeles amends its Sidewalk Vending Ordinance to eliminate seven blanket no-vending zones, acknowledging the unlawful nature of the policy.
Demurrer Overruled
Judge James Chalfant overrules the City’s demurrer, allowing the lawsuit to continue.
Documents
Complaint Filed
Two street vendors and three community empowerment groups file a lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles challenging its widespread and arbitrary vending restrictions as violations of state law.
Documents
Clients
- Merlin Alvarado has worked along Hollywood Boulevard as a fruit and hot dog vendor for approximately seven years. She operates a permitted fruit cart, which requires annual permit fees and a commissary lease which currently costs her some $300 per month. Since the Ordinance was passed, Ms. Alvarado has received approximately thirty citations for operating in a “no vending” zone, and does not know how many outstanding citations she currently has, given that she frequently receives citations in the mail that were not handed to her in person while operating her business.
She has been physically chased by a Bureau of Street Services investigator after working in the Hollywood “no vending” zone, and in another incident, while working north of that zone, she was wrongly told by BSS investigators writing her a citation that vendors must remain 500 feet beyond the “no vending” zone itself. The citations she has received from the City for operating in a “no vending” zone, together with the harassment and retaliation experienced from City officials, have made it difficult for her to operate her business consistently and to pay her existing business expenses.
- Ruth Monroy is a fruit and hot dog vendor who has worked along Hollywood Boulevard for some five years. Since the Ordinance was passed, she has received multiple Notice of Violations (“NOVs”), which have included threats of impoundment of her vending equipment if she continued to operate her business in a “no vending” zone. The NOVs and warnings from City officials regarding impoundment of her vending equipment have made it difficult for Ms. Monroy to operate her business consistently.
- Community Power Collective builds power with low-income workers, tenants, and transit riders through transformative organizing toward a solidarity economy, community control of land and housing, and dignified public systems & spaces in Boyle Heights and the greater LA region.
- East LA Community Corporation (ELACC) is a Boyle Heights-based community development corporation that uses an equitable development model to engage residents traditionally left out of decision-making processes. In addition to affordable housing, they provide financial capability services through their Community Wealth department, which supports sidewalk vendors with free tax preparation, financial coaching, Technical Assistance, and social loans. ELACC is co-founder of the Los Angeles Street Vendor Campaign (LASVC) and has worked with micro-entrepreneurs for over a decade.
- Inclusive Action for the City (IAC) is a Community Development Financial Institution and nonprofit organization based in Los Angeles whose mission is to bring people together to build strong local economies that uplift low-income urban communities through advocacy and transformative economic development initiatives. IAC serves the community through policy advocacy, research, consulting services, business coaching, and a lending program, among other efforts. IAC is a co-founder of the Los Angeles Street Vendor Campaign (LASVC) and has worked with street vendors and other small business owners for more than 10 years.
Organizational Partners
The United to House LA Coalition consists of over 240 groups to support the implementation of Measure ULA for affordable housing & to keep people housed.
Legal Team
Public Counsel
Public Counsel is a nonprofit public interest law firm dedicated to advancing civil rights and racial and economic justice, as well as to amplifying the power of our clients through comprehensive legal advocacy. Founded on and strengthened by a pro bono legal service model, our staff and volunteers seek justice through direct legal services, promote healthy and resilient communities through education and outreach, and support community-led efforts to transform unjust systems through litigation and policy advocacy in and beyond Los Angeles.
Case Attorney:
- Ritu Mahajan Estes, Directing Attorney
Western Center on Law & Poverty
Formed in 1967, Western Center on Law & Poverty fights for justice and system-wide change to secure housing, health care, racial justice, and a strong safety net for Californians with low incomes. Western Center attains real-world, policy solutions for clients through litigation, legislative and policy advocacy, and technical assistance and legal support for the state’s legal aid programs. Western Center is the oldest and largest legal services support center in the state of California. For more information, go to https://wclp.org/.
Arnold & Porter
With nearly 1,000 lawyers and 14 offices in the U.S., Europe and Asia, Arnold & Porter’s lawyers practice in more than 40 practice groups across the litigation, regulatory and transactional spectrum to help clients with complex needs stay ahead of the challenges they face.
Press
Press Releases
- Press Release: Street Vendors Secure Groundbreaking Settlement with City of L.A., Ending Discriminatory Vending Restrictions and Reimbursing Citations, 7/19/24
- Press Release: City of L.A. Acknowledges Unlawful Nature of No-Vending Zones—Moves to Eliminate No-Vending Zones by Amending Its Sidewalk Vending Ordinance, 2/2/24
- Press Release: Trial Date Set for Street Vendors’ Lawsuit to End City of L.A.’s “Unlawful & Discriminatory” No-Vending Zones, 9/5/23
- Press Release: Judge Rules in Support of Street Vending Plaintiffs: The Fight Against the City of LA’s Unlawful and Discriminatory No Vending Zones will Continue, 3/16/23
- Press Release: Community Groups Sue City of LA for Unlawful and Discriminatory No-Vending Zones that Ban Street Vending, 12/8/22
Media Stories
- LA Downtown News, Looking Forward: Street vendors, community organizations talk future plans, 7/29/24
- L.A. Taco, Street Vendors Successfully Sue City to Remove Illegal ‘No Vending’ Signs And Won, 7/25/24
- StreetsBlogLA, L.A. Street Vendors Celebrate Removal of No-Vending Restrictions in Huge Win Against City, 7/22/24
- ABC7, LA street vendors reach settlement with city over vending restrictions, 7/20/24
- LA Times, In a win for street vendors, L.A. agrees to lift restrictions and cancel fines, 7/19/24
- LAist, LA agrees to lift restrictions on street vendors and cancel fines to settle lawsuit, 7/19/24
- Daily Journal, LA Reaches Settlement With Street Vendors Banned Near Iconic Sites, 7/19/24
- MyNewsLA, Street Merchants Reach Settlement with City of LA Related Over Vending Rules, 7/19/24
- Audacy.com, Street vendors reach settlement with L.A. over vending rules, 7/19/24
- LAist, LA ‘No-Vending’ Zone Trial Postponed Again As Street Vendors Push For Settlement, 5/15/24
- StreetsBlogLA, Trial Postponed Again as Street Vendors, City Continue Negotiations, 4/8/24
- LA Times, L.A. street vendors sue city over right to sell in prohibited zones, 12/9/22