SR-04-09-2013-7C - 208-019/400-15City Council Meeting: April 9, 2013
Agenda Item: 7_C
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Jacqueline Seabrooks, Chief of Police
Subject: Proposed Ordinance Limiting Late Night Vending On Main Street —
Supplemental Report
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council introduce for first reading the attached
Ordinance amending Section 6.36.095 of the Santa Monica Municipal Code in order to
narrowly expand the area, time, and place of late night vending as is currently prohibited
on Main Street.
Executive Summary
The following supplemental report is to amend the original staff report to reflect the
proposed amended ordinance by replacing "Columbus Day' (pg.6) as one of the
prohibited holidays with Cinco de Mayo, May 5th. This change to the original staff report
will accurately reflect the proposed ordinance amendment.
In recent years, commercial vending activities from vehicles, particularly food trucks,
have grown exponentially within the City. The impact of this increase in vending
activities has been most acute on Main Street during late night hours, when food trucks
operating near alcohol serving establishments attract large crowds of persons exiting
Main Street bars during their closing hours. In light of these weighty safety concerns, in
November 2011, the Council adopted a narrow ordinance (Ordinance 2381 (CCS))
prohibiting vending from vehicles on Main Street, between Ocean Park Boulevard and
Marine Street, during the hours of 1:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.
Ordinance 2381 has proven to be an effective tool in protecting public safety along Main
Street. However, the same safety concerns remain apparent during certain holidays
popularly associated with alcohol consumption that fall on a week day other than Friday
or Saturday.
1
Discussion
Staff recommends that the ordinance amendment expands the vending prohibition on
Main Street, during the hours of 1:00 am to 3:00 am, to include the half block
(approximately four parking spaces) between Marine Street and the City's southern
border with the City of Los Angeles, and on holidays that draw large crowds to drinking
establishments. Holidays would include: New Year's Day, Valentine's Day, Saint
Patrick's Day, Halloween, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, and Cinco de
Mayo.
Financial Impacts & Budget Actions
There is no immediate financial impact or budget action necessary as a result of the
recommended action. Existing City staff will be utilized to enforce the requirements of
this ordinance, should it be adopted by Council.
Prepared by: Daniel Salerno, Police Captain
Approved: Forwarded to Council:
Attachments:
PROPOSED ORDINANCE
K
Rod Gould
City Manager
ID
—D City of City Council Report
Santa Monica'
City Council Meeting: April 9, 2013
Agenda Item:-7-C,
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Jacqueline Seabrooks, Chief of Police
Subject: Proposed Ordinance Limiting Late Night Vending On Main Street
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council introduce for first reading the attached
Ordinance amending Section 6.36.095 of the Santa Monica Municipal Code in order to
narrowly expand the area, time and place of late night vending activity is currently
prohibited on Main Street.
Executive Summary
In recent years, commercial vending activities from vehicles, particularly food trucks,
have grown exponentially within the City. The impact of this increase in vending
activities has been most acute on Main Street during late night hours, when food trucks
operating near alcohol serving establishments attract large crowds of persons exiting
Main Street bars during their closing hours. These large crowds create extreme
congestion on the narrow sidewalks along Main Street, force pedestrians onto the
roadway, and pose significant safety hazards to the public. In light of these weighty
safety concerns, in November 2011, the Council adopted a narrow ordinance
(Ordinance 2381 (CCS)) prohibiting vending from vehicles on Main Street, between
Ocean Park Boulevard and Marine Street, during the hours of 1:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m., on
Saturdays and Sundays.
Since then, enforcement staff has found Ordinance 2381 to be an effective tool in
protecting public safety along Main Street. However, the same safety concerns that
precipitated Ordinance 2381 remain apparent during certain holidays popularly
associated with alcohol consumption that may fall on a week day, and further south on
Main Street (between Marine Street and the City's southern limits). This proposed
ordinance narrowly expands the vending prohibition on Main Street to address these
remaining safety concerns.
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Background
California law specifically authorizes local governments to adopt laws, in the interest of
public safety, which regulate the time, place, and manner of vending from vehicles upon
any street. See Government Code Section 22455. The legislative history of Section
22455 lends furthers support to local regulation based on safety. Senator Calderon,
author of Section 22455's latest amendments, indicated that while cities and counties
have long had mobile vending regulations, those had been under fierce legal attack
during the last decade. Section 22455 was amended into its current form to ensure that
"cities and counties can enforce ordinances necessary to maintain the health and safety
of patrons and streets alike."
Consistent with Section 22455's grant of legislative authority and Santa Monica's
constitutionally granted Charter City police powers, the Council has adopted various
City wide vending regulations. See SMMC Chapter 6.36. These regulations were
designed to protect public health and safety, and to ensure safe pedestrian and motorist
traffic. These regulations establish location limitations (e.g. safe vending distance away
from bus stops, intersections, other vendors, etc.), cleanup responsibilities, and noise
standards. The City's Police Department ( "SMPD ") and Code Enforcement Division
enforce these regulations.
Recently, the Council has had several occasions to consider the impact of commercial
vendors on the City's neighborhoods, streets and sidewalks. A January 7 2010
Council Information Item provided information on local legal requirements for food
trucks to congregate and vend from an off - street location (e.g. parking lots). On
January 19, 2010, Council directed staff to examine options for authorizing food truck
vending operations on private property and to propose a mechanism to allow these
trucks to operate on a temporary basis, subject to operational conditions. During this
test period, staff would assess the potential long -term impacts and determine if on -going
operation was warranted. Furthermore, an August 11, 2010, Council Information Item
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outlined the existing Temporary Use Permit process as the permit mechanism to
authorize short -term off - street food vending operations. On June 21, 2011, Council
conducted a study session on the impacts of commercial vending on the City's
neighborhoods, streets and sidewalks. Finally, on November 22, 2011, the Council
adopted Ordinance 2381 (CCS) prohibiting vending from vehicles on Main Street,
between Ocean Park Boulevard and .Marine Street, during the hours of 1:00 a.m. to
3:00 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.
Discussion
While Southern California has long enjoyed the presence of mobile vending trucks,
which traditionally served remote business or construction sites; mobile vending
activities have exponentially increased in recent years. Currently, approximately 213
vending trucks are licensed to operate in Santa Monica. In addition to this increase in
truck volume, there have also been significant changes in the vending trucks' hours of
operations. For instance, vending during late night hours has become increasingly
prevalent.
These changes have significantly impacted the area of Main Street between Ocean
Park Boulevard and the City's southern border with Los Angeles. This area of Main
Street contains a significant number of alcohol serving establishments (e.g. bars and
nightclubs) which attract large numbers of patrons. Besides being an entertainment
destination, Main Street is also a major north -south thoroughfare within the City, which
often carries significant vehicular traffic. It contains very narrow sidewalks and virtually
no parkways. Those narrow sidewalks support numerous improvements, including
street trees, bike racks, newsracks, bus stop benches, and other street furniture.
The alcohol serving establishments are significant draws for mobile vendors. Large
numbers of vendors operate on Main Street between 1:00 a.m. and 3:00 a.m., in an
effort to attract customers who are leaving the alcohol serving establishments. This
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phenomenon is particularly acute during Friday and Saturday evenings and during
holidays, when the Main Street alcohol serving establishments are often operating at
maximum capacity.
As patrons, including intoxicated patrons, depart the alcohol serving establishments,
they are attracted to the mobile vendors. This often creates huge crowds of persons,
standing or sitting on the sidewalks and socializing while they eat, that spread
throughout the streets and sidewalks along Main Street. This causes Main Street
sidewalks to be virtually impassable and driveways to be blocked. Persons, intoxicated
or otherwise, are forced to navigate off the sidewalks and enter the roadway in order to
travel up and down Main Street. This creates significant dangers of collisions in the
roadways, especially when intoxicated persons are involved.
Moreover, persons who purchase eatables from such mobile vendors often consume
them immediately afterwards. Due to the significant crowds and the narrow sidewalks
on Main Street, persons often choose to sit on street curbs or even parking spaces to
consume foods. Such persons, while sitting, are not easily seen by drivers of vehicles
attempting to enter or exit their parking spaces and may be struck by such vehicles.
Ordinance 2381 (CCS), which prohibits vending from vehicles on Main Street, between
Ocean Park Boulevard and Marine Street, during the hours of 1:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. on
Saturdays and Sundays, has significantly reduced the public safety risks articulated
above. However, Ordinance 2381's vending prohibition is not effective during holidays
popularly associated with alcohol consumption that may fall on a week day, nor does it
address the same safety concerns that remain present just south of Marine Street (the
half block of Main Street between Marine Street and the City's southern limits
encompassing four on- street parking spaces). These four parking spaces sit directly in
front of an alcohol serving establishment, 31TEN. The elimination of on- street vending
between Ocean Park Boulevard and Marine Street has caused vendor trucks to covet
and compete for these four remaining spaces. The collection of vending trucks at these
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spaces tended to draw huge gatherings, attracting patrons departing from virtually every
alcohol serving establishment on Main Street.
Accordingly, staff brings this proposed ordinance to Council in an effort to address the
above public safety hazards caused by late night commercial vending on Main Street.
The proposed ordinance narrowly expands, the vending prohibition on Main Street,
during the hours of 1:00 am to 3:00 am, to include the half block (approximately four
parking spaces) between Marine Street and the City's southern border with the City of
Los Angeles, and on holidays that draw large crowds to drinking establishments. Such
holidays would include: New Year's Day, Valentine's Day, Saint . Patrick's Day,
Halloween, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, and Columbus Day.
This proposed ordinance is designed to protect the rights of the vendors by targeting
only the time and place within the City where the health and safety dangers posed by
commercial vending is the greatest. Thus, this proposed ordinance leaves open ample
opportunities for vendors to vend both on Main Street, aside from the limited time
restrictions, and in other areas throughout the City.
If approved by Council, this Ordinance would become effective 30 days from its second
reading. As has been the practice with other new City enforcement initiatives, SMPD
will implement the Ordinance gradually, first through issuance of advisories and
warnings. If the warnings do not bring about compliance, SMPD staff can use the full
panoply of administrative and criminal enforcement tools available to bring about
compliance.
Public Outreach
Housing and Economic Development Department staff reports that the Main Street
Business Improvement Association and the Southern California Mobile Food Vendors
Association have been notified of this proposed ordinance. At the time of notification,
the Association spokesperson did not express any opposition.
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Financial Impacts & Budget Actions
There is no immediate financial impact or budget action necessary as a result of the
recommended action. Existing City staff will be utilized to enforce the requirements of
this ordinance, should it be adopted by Council.
Prepared by: Daniel Salerno, Police Captain
Approved:
Attachments:
PROPOSED ORDINANCE
FT
Forwarded to Council:
Rod Gould
City Manager
Council Meeting: April 9, 2013
Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER (CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
AMENDING SECTION 6.36.095 OF THE SANTA MONICA MUNICIPAL CODE
RELATED TO LATE NIGHT VENDING ON MAIN STREET
WHEREAS, the City consists of just eight square miles of coastal land which is
home to 90,000 residents, the job site of 300,000 workers, and a destination for as
many as 500,000 visitors on weekends and holidays; and
WHEREAS, the City's unusual density necessitates special efforts to preserve
the free and safe flow of pedestrian, bicycle, and vehicular traffic; and
WHEREAS, congestion is particularly problematic on Main Street, because it
contains very narrow sidewalks, on street parallel parking, and virtually no parkways;
and
WHEREAS, the narrow sidewalks on Main Street support numerous
improvements which enhance the pedestrian experience but also limit circulation, such
as street trees, bike racks, newsracks, bus stop benches, and other street furniture; and
WHEREAS, public sidewalks are created and maintained for the primary purpose
of enabling pedestrians to safely and efficiently move about from place to place; and
WHEREAS, ensuring the unobstructed flow of pedestrian traffic on sidewalks
promotes public safety by minimizing the risk that pedestrians will jostle one another,
1
collide, trip, or fall, and ensuring that persons may move safely away from dangerous
situations which may occur on or near public streets and sidewalks; and
WHEREAS, ensuring the free flow of pedestrian traffic is particularly important to
the safety of the elderly, the very young, the disabled, vision - impaired persons, and
others who are less able to navigate through crowds and around obstacles or hazards
and who are particularly jeopardized by having to navigate off and onto curbs when
sidewalks are blocked; and
WHEREAS, hindrances to the free flow of pedestrian traffic on sidewalks may
interfere with the work of public safety personnel seeking immediate access to
emergency situations and with other work vital to the public health and safety, such as
cleaning and maintenance; and
WHEREAS, in recent years, persons have begun conducting commercial
vending, mainly food sales, from vehicles while parked adjacent to alcohol serving
establishments (e.g., bars and nightclubs) on Main Street, well into the late night hours;
and
WHEREAS, these late night vending activities attract large stationary crowds,
including persons exiting from adjacent alcohol serving establishments who may be
experiencing varying degrees of alcohol intoxication; and
WHEREAS, persons intoxicated while in public are often unable to care for their
own safety, are particularly accident - prone, and can endanger others; and
WHEREAS, such large crowds have created extreme congestion on the narrow
sidewalks along Main Street; and
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WHEREAS, such extreme sidewalk congestion coupled with the large size of the
vending vehicles have forced persons, both sober and intoxicated, to leave the
sidewalks and walk in the street, not only across, but also up and down Main Street,
and to hail public or private transportation from within the street; and
WHEREAS, these late night vending activities, coupled with a lack of seating
facilities for sidewalk food consumption, have caused persons to sit on sidewalks, street
curbs, and even parking spaces to consume foods; and
WHEREAS, late night vending on Main Street creates potential health concerns
as there is a lack of available public restrooms on or near Main Street during such
hours; and
WHEREAS, this proliferation of late night vending near alcohol serving
establishments has created significant threats to public safety, and damages the public
welfare; and
WHEREAS, blockage of public sidewalks on Main Street during the late night
hours poses serious safety hazards because pedestrians, especially intoxicated
pedestrians, who cannot pass freely along the sidewalks frequently step into the street
where they may be struck by vehicles or cause collisions between vehicles; and
WHEREAS, persons, especially intoxicated persons, crossing into the middle of
streets to hail public or private transportation at night time, are exposed to significant
danger of collision with vehicles; and
WHEREAS, disease may be transmitted to persons sitting on sidewalks while
eating because people or animals expectorate, urinate or defecate on sidewalks; and
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WHEREAS, persons sitting on curbs or parking spaces while consuming food at
night time are not easily seen by drivers of vehicles attempting to enter or exit their
parking spaces and may be struck by such vehicles; and
WHEREAS, the City's streets and sidewalks are not intended, designed or
maintained for dining without tables and chairs; and
WHEREAS, maintaining public safety on Main Street during the late night hours
presents special challenges to the City's public safety personnel, particularly in times of
emergency, because of the very large crowds, narrow roadways, narrow sidewalks,
limited ingress and egress, and fixed impediments to circulation; and
WHEREAS, there are numerous other places within the City where vending from
vehicles may safely take place during late night hours without unduly interfering with the
flow of pedestrian or vehicular traffic, threatening public safety or harming the public
welfare; and
WHEREAS, in order to protect public safety, the City Council adopted Ordinance
2381 (CCS) which prohibits late night vending on Main Street between Ocean Park
Boulevard and Marine Street, during the hours of 1:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. on Saturdays
and Sundays; and
WHEREAS, since the adoption of Ordinance 2381, staff has continued vigorous
enforcement activities on Main Street, and experience has shown that the above safety
concerns remain significant on holidays popularly associated with alcohol consumption
that may fall on a week day, and thus are not currently covered by Ordinance 2381; and
Cl
WHEREAS, enforcement experience has also demonstrated that the same
safety risks described above, exist in the half block of Main Street (between Marine
Street and the City's southern boundary) not currently covered by Ordinance 2381; and
WHEREAS, this half -block of Main Street contains four on- street parking spaces
that sit directly in front an alcohol serving establishment; and
WHEREAS, these parking spaces are very frequently jammed with food trucks
and their patrons during late night hours; and
WHEREAS, a limited expansion of Ordinance 2381's vending prohibition to
include the half -block and the holidays popularly associated with alcohol consumption
that may fall on a week day is necessary to protect public safety; and
WHEREAS, California Vehicle Code Section 22455 specifically authorizes local
authorities to adopt laws, in the interest of public safety, which regulate the time, place,
and manner of vending from vehicles upon any street; and
WHEREAS, the City Council hereby determines that it is necessary to exercise
this authority as set forth in this ordinance in order to protect public safety.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Section 6.36.095 of the Santa Monica Municipal Code is hereby
amended to read as follows:
6.36.095 Prohibition of late night vending on Main Street
No person shall vend from vehicles, including unhitched trailers, on Main Street,
between Ocean Park Boulevard and Marine Streai the City's southern boundary, during
the hours of 1:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. on Saturdays -a44d Sundays, St. Patrick's Day,
5
Valentine's Day, Cinco De Mayo Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day Labor Day,
Halloween, and New Year's Day.
Section 2. Any provision of the Santa Monica Municipal Code or appendices
thereto inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance, to the extent of such
inconsistencies and no further, is hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary
to effect the provisions of this Ordinance.
Section 3. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this
Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of any
court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the
remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would
have passed this Ordinance and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause,
or phrase not declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion
of the ordinance would be subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional.
Section 4. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall attest to the passage of
this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause the same to be published once in the official
newspaper within 15 days after its adoption. This Ordinance shall become effective 30
days from its adoption. .
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
9
Revised 7 -C
From: Jacqueline Seabrooks, Chief of Police
Subject: Proposed Ordinance Limiting Late Night Vending On Main Street —
Supplemental Report
Recommended .Action
Staff recommends that the City Council introduce for first reading the attached
Ordinance amending Section 6.36.095 of the Santa Monica Municipal Code in order to
narrowly expand the area, time, and place of late night vending as is currently prohibited
on Main Street.
Executive Summary
The following supplemental report is to amend the original staff report to reflect the
proposed amended ordinance by replacing "Columbus :Day" (pg.6) as one of the
prohibited holidays with Cinco de Mayo, May 5t ". This change to the original staff report
will accurately reflect the proposed ordinance amendment.
In recent years, commercial vending activities from vehicles, particularly food trucks,
have grown exponentially within the City. The impact :of this increase in vending
activities has been most acute on Main Street during late night hours, when food trucks
operating near alcohol serving establishments attract large crowds of persons exiting
Main Street bars during their closing hours. In light of these weighty safety concerns, in
November 2011, the Council adopted a narrow ordinance (Ordinance 2381 (CGS))
prohibiting vending from vehicles on Main Street, between Ocean Park Boulevard and
Marine Street, during the hours of 1:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.
Ordinance 2381 has proven to be an effective tool in protecting public safety along Main
Street. However, the same safety concerns remain apparent during certain holidays
popularly associated with alcohol consumption that fall on a week day other than Friday
or Saturday.
Revised 7 -C
Discussion
Staff recommends that the ordinance amendment expands the vending prohibition on
Main Street, during the hours of 1:00 am to 3:00 am, to include the half block
(approximately four parking spaces) between Marine Street and the City's southern
border with the City of Los Angeles, and on holidays that draw large crowds to drinking
establishments. Holidays would include: New Year's Day, Valentine's Day, Saint
Patrick's Day, Halloween, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, and Cinco de
Mayo.
Financial Impacts & Budget Actions
There is no immediate financial impact or budget action necessary as a result of the
recommended action. Existing City staff will be utilized to enforce the requirements of
this ordinance, should it be adopted by Council.
Prepared by: Daniel Salerno, Police Captain
Approved:
Attachments:
ON
Forwarded to Council:
Rod Gould
City Manager