For both the out-of-towner and the homegrown Angeleno, there are few authentic Los Angeles experiences like getting a bacon-wrapped hot dog with all the fixings along Hollywood Boulevard. The smell of grilled onions and jalapeños alone is enough to get you hooked. I’m sure that after you grab your hot dog, you thank the street vendor for the service and go your merry way. You trust that they will be there the next day and the day after that. It’s a tourist area, and there’s money to be made.
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What you might not know is that the street vendor who just gave you a fresh, greasy hot dog is fighting to stay in that space. What you also might not know is that the street vendor probably accumulated thousands of dollars in fines to stay.
The city of L.A. has set several “no-vending zones” in tourist areas, like Hollywood’s Walk of Fame. Vendors are supposed to stay 500 feet away from these places but it’s these spots that have high chances of foot traffic and tourists who are willing to pay for food and other goods. While they might not get criminalized for being in a no-vending zone, they will get a hefty fine.
Now, these street vendors are fighting back. In her latest story, my colleague Leslie Berestein Rojas reported on how they've filed a lawsuit, calling the zones “illegal” and “unfair” and in conflict with SB 946, the 2018 law that decriminalized street vending in the state of California.
The city has until tomorrow to respond to their lawsuit.
Read more about what the street vendors are up against and how they may have an ally in city hall: Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martínez.
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