Elk Grove code enforcement educating street vendors on health, safety violations

On a late night in Elk Grove, when nearly every restaurant is closed, taco stands emerge on street corners operating late into the night. The accessibility attracts hungry patrons, but there’s one problem. Many of these stands are illegal.

Stationary and roaming vendors are allowed on sidewalks within city limits, but stands without proper licenses have led to more complaints from the general public and more enforcement efforts, said Jose Mendez, Elk Grove’s Code Enforcement manager.

Operators have to obtain a city business license, a seller’s permit from the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration and a health permit from Sacramento County’s Environmental Management Department.

According to city officials, multiple street vendors in Elk Grove do not have those requirements, which can lead to violations and citations. However, Mendez said the city has not issued any citations.

“Sidewalk vendors cannot obstruct a sidewalk or block the entrance into a business and must maintain a clear path of travel on the sidewalk of not less than 5 feet wide to comply with ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) requirements,” Elk Grove spokeswoman Kristyn Laurence said about the rules. “Vendors cannot obstruct visibility at intersections and stationary vendors cannot operate in residential zoning districts.”

Stationary pop-up vendors on private property must abide by the same permit and license requirements as sidewalk vendors.

“The activity can be prohibited or subject to a conditional use permit but it depends on the zoning of the property where this activity is occurring,” Laurence said.

Laurence said the city’s code enforcement unit has stepped up patrols during after hours and weekends following an “uptick in complaints” the city’s received.

Mendez said the rise of complaints began in July.

“It’s the confidential information, but we saw an increase in complaints coming in from our just our general hotline, See-Click-Fix app or phone call, emails, referrals, they come in through different ways,” Mendez said.

Laurence said three street carts were shut down on Sept. 6. One was closed for the night at a CVS property located on the corner of Calvine and Bradshaw roads. The other two vendors are at Laguna Boulevard and Bruceville Road, one stationed near the Chili’s restaurant and the other near Walgreens.

Laurence said there were also closures the following day, including a location on Calvine Road near the railroad tracks, east of North Sheldon road.

The street vendors who operate on the corner of Calvine and Bradshaw roads, near the CVS, were shut down again. Laurence said city police are working with the property owner to file a trespassing complaint that would prevent their return to the property.

There was another closure at Grant Line Road near Wilton Road, which Laurence said, had three different vendors operating without an Elk Grove business license. All were shut down.

City works break down barriers

The city works with food operators, including those with language barriers, to educate them on the permitting process.

The city’s code enforcement unit has shut down illegal street vendors for the past several weeks and has offered to teach them the prerequisites and necessary steps needed to operate legally, Laurence said.

Mendez pointed out that the majority of sidewalk vending operations in Elk Grove predominantly speak Spanish.

“The health department actually has a pretty informative package on how to obtain a health permit, both in English and in Spanish,” Mendez said.

Mendez said police and code enforcement officers who speak Spanish are often assigned to respond to complaints or contact sidewalk vendors.

“We also have a translation service phone line,” Mendez said.

Mendez said that many street food operators thought they were police officers, so part of their their methods included driving to illegal street popups and introduce themselves and their role as code enforcement, informing them of the health and safety measures in place to operate street food.

“The other part of it was the permitting requirements and explaining to them that we were there because we had a complaint, or we were proactively just providing information to ensure that they understood that there was a permanent requirement,” he said.

Laurence said in a Sept. 9 email that code enforcement warnings could turn into citations.

Mendez said the citations are to ensure the health and safety measures that are in place and won’t result in arrests. Senate Bill 946 decriminalized street vending in the state when it was signed into law by then-Gov. Jerry Brown in 2018.

Rise in Woodland

Sacramento County isn’t the only place to see a rise in these pop-up stands. Woodland County spokesman Spencer Bowen said in an email Monday that the flux of illegal stands are a “complex issue” in their area.

“The city has begun to cite and fine the owners of property where illegal food vending takes place. In fact, our code compliance staff completed another round of documentation and citations this past weekend,” Bowen said about Woodland County’s recent efforts to get a handle on the situation.

Bowen said that handing citations and fines to the property owners was the best way to prevent them from allowing pop-up vendors to sell food

“We think this is the best method to discourage property owners from tolerating these unsafe and unpermitted activities,” he said. “We’re focused on protecting our residents’ health and our small businesses’ success, both of which can be negatively impacted by these unpermitted, uninspected, and sometimes unsanitary operations.”

Residents love street vendors

Neal Ferguson got to the taco stand on Calvine Road near the railroad tracks just after 6 p.m. Wednesday as they were still setting up before the evening dinner rush.

It was Ferguson’s first time eating from the pop-up stand after his wife had mentioned reviews on the NextDoor app raving about how good the food is.

“She thinks it’s the one that’s down off of Elk Grove-Florin and Calvine. And I think it’s this one here by Calvine and the railroad tracks. Everybody likes it. They had good reviews ... so I thought I’d give it a shot,” Ferguson said.

Ferguson, who lives just outside of Elk Grove in the Vineyard neighborhood of Sacramento County, knows that there’s a possibility that the stand he ordered dinner from could not be operating legally.

“Well, I’m gonna say they’re probably illegal, but nobody’s gonna say anything to them, I don’t think, right? I mean, unless they’re a real tightwad,” he said.

Ferguson said he doesn’t believe people are worried about whether they are operating legally or illegally and just want enjoy good food. He doesn’t see them going anywhere.

“There’s so many of them, they’d have to crack down on, I don’t think it’s going to happen,” Ferguson said. “If they did, I think the public would retaliate against whoever’s going to crack down on it.”