Chapter 10.48
MOBILE FOOD VENDING
Sections:
10.48.030 Permit requirements.
10.48.050 Operating standards.
10.48.010 Purpose.
It is the purpose of this chapter to support entrepreneurship of vending in the public right-of-way, to encourage pedestrian activity, and to require safe and sustainable business operations that protect the community and are aligned with its values.
A. The city aspires to create a respectful environment between brick and mortar businesses and mobile vendors so each business model thrives and contributes to the local economy.
B. The city aims to inspire entrepreneurship and inclusiveness by allowing mobile food vendors to bring their goods to the community.
C. Mobile vendors increase access to desired goods, such as healthier food options and culturally significant food; and
D. Mobile vendors activate the right-of-way and contribute to a safe and dynamic public space.
E. Mobile vendors bring convenience, economic vitality and pedestrian activity and increased food access to a variety of locations in the city; and
F. The city will continue to require environmentally friendly business practices, including the use of reusable and compostable food service ware.
G. In 2021 the Blue Zones Project – Monterey County has expanded to include the city of Seaside. The city of Seaside is a supporter of the Blue Zones Project’s community well-being improvement initiatives, including increasing access to healthier food options through mobile food vendors. (Ord. 2010 § 1(C) (Exh. C), 2021)
10.48.020 Definitions.
“Compostable” or “certified compostable” means a material that meets BPI, Cedar Grove, ASTM, or other standard designated as acceptable by the franchised waste hauler and undergoes degradation by biological processes during composting to yield carbon dioxide (CO2), water, inorganic compounds, and biomass within a nominal time frame. Compostable disposable food service ware shall be clearly labeled “compostable” in accordance with the California Public Resources Code Section 42357 et seq. and all state and federal labeling laws pertaining to the identification of compostable products, as those standards may be amended.
“Food truck vendor” means any person who operates a mobile food vehicle or truck in the public right-of-way for a period not to exceed four hours.
“Mobile food vehicle or truck” means any vehicle, as defined in Section 670 of the California Vehicle Code, which is equipped and used for retail sales of prepared, prepackaged, or unprepared food or foodstuffs of any kind that parks and conducts business in the city’s public right-of-way. A mobile food vehicle or truck shall also include any trailer or wagon equipped and used as described in this definition and pulled by a vehicle.
“Mobile vending permit” means a permit issued to a food truck vendor or a sidewalk vendor.
“Roaming sidewalk vendor” means a sidewalk vendor who moves from place to place and stops only to complete a transaction.
“Sidewalk vendor” means any person who sells food or merchandise from a pushcart, stand, display, pedal-driven cart, wagon, showcase, rack, or other nonmotorized conveyance, or from one’s person, upon a public sidewalk or other pedestrian path is permitted to operate as a roaming sidewalk vendor or stationary sidewalk vendor.
“Stationary sidewalk vendor” means a sidewalk vendor who vends from a fixed location. (Ord. 2010 § 1(C) (Exh. C), 2021)
10.48.030 Permit requirements.
A. Application Period and Permit Limitation. The city shall adopt by resolution an application process and a limitation on the number of food truck vendor permits.
B. Licenses and Permits Required.
1. Potential vendors are responsible for obtaining all necessary licenses and permits, including but not limited to a Live Scan clearance from the Seaside police department, a city business license, a valid California Department of Tax and Fee Administration seller’s permit, and a permit for food service from the Monterey County health department.
2. Beginning March 1, 2022, vendors are required to illustrate compliance with Chapter 8.60 SMC and SMC 10.48.050(C), Waste and Litter Reduction.
a. After March 1, 2022, proof of compliance is required prior to permit issuance or renewal.
3. Mobile vending permits are issued by the city to specific vendors, are nontransferrable, and shall not be subleased.
a. Food truck vendor permits are for vendors that do not operate from one location for more than four hours.
b. Sidewalk vendor permits are for vendors, roaming and stationary, operating from public sidewalks or pedestrian paths.
4. The city-approved mobile vending permit shall be in the possession of the vendor at all times when operating in the city and is required to be provided to city staff upon request.
5. Food truck vendors and vehicles shall comply with state motor vehicle laws. (Ord. 2010 § 1(C) (Exh. C), 2021)
10.48.040 Exemptions.
The following are exempt from obtaining a mobile vending permit, but still must operate in compliance with applicable subsections of SMC 10.48.050 and may be required to pay associated event fees:
A. An event authorized by a special event permit, limited term permit or other permit or entitlement issued by the city, such as an authorized street fair;
B. An event at a school facility, assembly use facility, or recreational facility if the vendor is in partnership with the organization conducting the event and is located on the site of the event (i.e., not in the public right-of-way); and
C. An event at a public park with special event approval. (Ord. 2010 § 1(C) (Exh. C), 2021)
10.48.050 Operating standards.
The following standards apply to food truck vendors that operate within the public right-of-way and/or public property:
A. Operating Requirements.
1. Hours of Operation.
a. Commercial zones: Permitted hours of operation are six a.m. to eleven p.m. Vendors are permitted to operate in the right-of-way directly adjacent to commercial zoned properties for a period not to exceed four hours.
b. Residential zones: Permitted hours of operation are ten a.m. to seven p.m. and are limited to vendors who may only park at the request of a customer to complete a sales transaction for a period not to exceed ten minutes.
c. Open space and recreation zones: Permitted hours of operation are ten a.m. to seven p.m. Vendors are permitted to operate in the right-of-way directly adjacent to city parks for a period not to exceed four hours.
d. Vendors shall be required to relocate a minimum of four city blocks after operating from one location for a duration not to exceed four hours.
2. Vendors shall maintain a clear path of travel on the sidewalk (forty-eight inches minimum, thirty-six inches if restrictions exist caused by the right-of-way, natural barriers, or other existing site conditions cause an unreasonable hardship), pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act.
a. Operations shall be contained in the vehicle or trailer, except the following accessory items: required waste, recycle, and compost receptacles, one accessory condiment table not more than four feet in length.
b. Accessory items are limited to placement on the sidewalk, and within the boundaries of the truck length, where the required path of travel would not be obstructed.
3. Trailers shall not be detached or unhitched from the vehicle at any time.
4. The combined length of the vehicle and/or trailer shall not exceed forty feet in length.
5. Public and private rights-of-way for mobile food vending shall have full public improvements (curb, gutter, sidewalk, hardscape, etc.).
6. Mobile food vendors shall operate in compliance with the California Vehicle Code, SMC Title 10, Vehicles and Traffic, and all posted parking, stopping and standing restrictions.
a. Mobile food vendors shall not stop, stand, or park in any designated no parking zone, loading zone, bus zone, or in any time-limited (green curb) parking space.
b. Mobile food vendors shall not occupy more than two marked parking spaces.
B. Location and Siting.
1. Mobile food vendors shall not operate directly adjacent to, or across the street from, the frontage of any building-enclosed food service establishment that sells a similar cuisine type, except when the establishment is closed for business.
2. Mobile food vendors shall not operate within four blocks of an event authorized by a special event permit, limited term permit or other permit or entitlement issued by the city.
3. Mobile food vendors shall not stop, stand, or park within thirty feet of street intersections and alleys or within fifteen feet of driveways.
4. Mobile food vendors are prohibited from operating on Broadway Avenue/Obama Way, between Del Monte Boulevard and General Jim Moore Boulevard.
5. Mobile food vendors are prohibited from operating in all rights-of-way, including alleys, of the West Broadway Urban Village, as shown in Figure 1:
Figure 1: Prohibited Vendor Locations
C. Waste and Litter Reduction.
1. Vendors shall comply with Chapters 8.60 (Environmentally Preferable Food Packaging) and 8.62 (Use of Single-Use Carryout Bags, Recycled Paper Bags, and Reusable Bags By Retail Establishments) SMC, including the following:
a. All vendors within the city utilizing disposable food service ware shall use certified compostable products, or recyclable nonplastic products. This includes but is not limited to plates, napkins, straws, cups, bottles, lids, utensils, bowls, stirrers, beverage plugs, trays and hinged or lidded containers. Nonplastic single-use products shall be allowed only if they are currently accepted for composting or recycling by the designated waste hauler.
b. All plastic straws, including PLA/bioplastic, are prohibited. Exceptions shall be made to the consumer self-identifying as needing a PLA/bioplastic or plastic straw, whereupon it should be provided to the consumer upon request.
c. Vendors shall not provide noncompostable single-use plastic bags, cartons, boxes, or containers at the point of sale to customers.
d. Single-use paper bags provided to customers shall contain a minimum of seventy-five percent post-consumer recycled fiber and must be recyclable or compostable.
e. Vendors shall provide clearly marked garbage, recycling, and compost receptacles for immediate use by customers.
f. Vendors shall pick up, remove and dispose of all garbage, and/or materials dispensed from vending and any residue deposited on the street from the operation thereof every four hours and/or prior to leaving a location where customers were served, and otherwise maintain in a clean and debris-free condition the entire area within a twenty-five-foot radius of the location where vending is occurring.
D. Additional Prohibitions.
1. Mobile food vendors shall not operate in an unsafe manner, including but not limited to impeding on- or off-site vehicle circulation and obstructing the view of pedestrians by motorists.
2. Vending shall not be permitted directly to persons in other vehicles.
3. No sales or service of alcohol shall be permitted by mobile food vendors.
4. Mobile food vendors shall not operate in the public right-of-way within one full city block of a public or private school within thirty minutes of the beginning or end of the school day, unless written permission of the school principal has been obtained and provided and verified by the city.
5. Littering and/or dumping is prohibited.
a. Garbage, recycling, and compost waste shall not be disposed of in city receptacles.
b. Water and wastewater shall not be discharged to the streets or storm drains.
6. Vendors shall be prohibited from amplifying music or audio.
a. Vendors operating ice cream trucks are exempt from this requirement and shall operate in compliance with Chapter 9.12 SMC (Noise Regulations).
E. Violations.
1. Violations of this chapter, reference chapters, and provisions of the license issued by the Monterey County health department are considered a public nuisance and may result in any one or all of the following actions:
a. Immediate revocation of any city-issued permit or license;
b. Repeat violations may result in permanent prohibition from receiving any future city permits or licenses for mobile vending or outdoor dining;
c. Administrative citation pursuant to Chapter 2.56 SMC;
d. Fines and penalties;
e. Abatement by the city code enforcement;
f. Court action, including but not limited to injunction, abatement, and damages upon a showing of a violation of this chapter, including any other remedies or penalties that are available. (Ord. 2010 § 1(C) (Exh. C), 2021)