Beach Avenue Food Carts

Would you like to see Food-Carts and Vending on Beach Avenue? The District has been considering the issue for quite some time, and has recently presented a plan to Council that Council said it will need some time to consider.

QUESTIONS for YOU:
1. Do we NEED vendors/carts/mobiles/trailers on Beach Avenue
2. Do we WANT vendors/carts/mobiles/trailers on Beach Avenue
3. … in the on-season, also in the off-season, weekends only, or 7 days/week
4. In designated pockets along Beach Ave, or anywhere vendors want to set up
5. Do you think this is fair to established Brick & Mortar businesses

There are a lot more questions, of course, (more below). It sounds like such a simple idea, but there are many things to consider. It’s been pointed out to me, (and quiet fairly, I think), that it makes sense to simply try a few vendors and see how it goes? A good, simple approach. Bearing in mind that bylaws & procedures must be created and voted into existence before programs such as this can move forward, we’ve got to consider that decisions at the government level aren’t usually made this way, for better or for worse. Anything we come up with has to be thought through thoroughly, as it’s quite a process to put it all down on paper. Aside: this is among the reasons government shouldn’t be too involved in business.

Some of the issues that came up:
- food waste by the water can attract unwanted pests, (esp. rats)
- patrons of food carts are likely to spread food waste and light packaging along the distance of the stroll, which likely means more garbage collection and District garbage cans will be necessary.
- The original OCP envisioned hot-dog “carts”, but 12 to 16 foot trailers have recently become the standard. These units would take up parking spaces on Beach Avenue, as they’re too large to pull up onto the grass.
- What to charge street vendors? Example: if specific spots are assigned to individual vendors along Beach Avenue, should the District charge premium prices for the best locations.
- Should vendors be rotated through premium locations in the interest of fairness.
- How to administer the plan? Example: if vendors are not assigned specific spots, but rather, are permitted to set up in designated areas at their own discretion along Beach Avenue, will the vendors naturally clump together in a “food court” configuration, or should the District require vendors to spread out along the stroll?
- How many resources should we dedicate to enforcement or monitoring of all this?

Are there other issues you can think of? Please feel free to bring them up. We’re not having this discussion to create problems, rather, we’re trying to come up with a vision for success that works in the best interests of the community.


MY SENTIMENTS:
I like the idea of grabbing a burger or hot-dog along a beach avenue stroll. The optics are summer-day excellent, it contributes to what I’d call a “festival” atmosphere, and I bet the kids & parents will love it, too. There aren’t many places to grab something light for little people, which is an important consideration for parents tasked with dragging tiny, sun-drenched, hungry bodies a few kilometers downtown for some fun in the sun. I think this will be attractive to visitors and local businesses will benefit from increased pedestrian traffic and convenience.

Sure, there’s going to be more garbage. I have a feeling we don’t collect quite frequently enough downtown anyway, so I don’t see this as a deal-breaker. I’m not one for excess regulations, and if we’re allowing street vendors, I’d like to see casual policies and vendors that develop naturally, with support from the District provided where required. Tough to write this into a bylaw, of course. Government isn’t synonymous with throwing darts at a board and seeing which ones stick. We’ll have to come up with bylaws that reflect policies that are in the best interests of the community and re-write bylaws if this doesn’t work out quite the way we wanted it to. If it’s anything to do with law, it can turn into something to do with law-yers, too. If something goes wrong, it could fall back on insurance, which brings us back to lawyers.

SUMMARY:
Personally, I have trouble imaging “clothes trailers”, as I don’t recall seeing them other places. To me, the crux of street-vending is primarily about food, but I’m very much looking forward to hearing what you have to say!