NEWS
Committee discusses vending cart waste
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by Lynn Heidmann
Thursday, December 1, 2005
The Madison Vending Oversight Committee extended food unloading hours for vendors by a half hour and discussed grease and garbage problems at a meeting Wednesday.
The committee considered whether to eliminate vendor-vehicle movement restrictions. Currently, vendors at Library Mall cannot bring in vehicles to unload food from 10:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. for pedestrian safety reasons. The rule has been in place for years, but committee chair Warren Hanson said it is unnecessary.
"It is hard to enforce the 10:30 to 2:30 rule, and it is unnecessary to sit there and monitor cart activity," Hanson said. "It was originally put in place for safety reasons, but we have never had any real problems with it."
The committee also discussed eliminating the restriction because of the potential for food spoilage. Hanson said since no vehicles are allowed in the area after 10:30 a.m., vendors must unload food before that time. He added the food unloaded must then sit in the cart until the lunch hour.
Vending cart owners and committee members Viet Hoang and Austin McClendon both said most vendors unload their food closer to 11 a.m. anyway, despite the current restrictions. Hoang said it is the most reasonable time to bring food and supplies to the cart from a safety standpoint and also from a business standpoint.
Committee member Rosemary Lee pointed out concerns for pedestrians associated with eliminating the restriction.
"I believe [allowing vehicles at any time] is a safety issue, especially at Library Mall in the summer," Lee said. "It's too congested."
The committee resolved to compromise on the restriction, allowing vendors to unload food anytime before 11 a.m. or after 2:30 p.m.
In addition to the parking restrictions, the committee also addressed recent complaints from citizens concerning waste left behind by late night street vendors. Hanson said he regularly gets complaints about leftover trash and grease.
Hanson said when carts dump grease on the ground or sidewalk; it could get into the storm water system and cause problems. However, Hanson said grease left behind by vendors is a much less complicated problem to deal with than garbage and other waste. It is easy to tell the vendor is responsible for grease, while it is unclear who is responsible for trash, he added.
Diana C. Housein-Salaita, a citizen committee member, said vendors are required to provide a trash receptacle next to their stands. However, she said it is unfair to hold vendors responsible for trash haphazardly thrown away on the street by citizens near their stands. Hanson said a more efficient system should be in place.
"As street vending continues to grow, we should come up with reasonable waste standards citywide," Hanson said. "The question is about the limitations of food vendors' responsibility for cleaning up trash."
The committee decided to add warnings about grease disposal from the Health Department on the street vending application itself. That way, Hanson said, vendors will be aware of the consequences from the beginning.
The committee will discuss issues involving trash and waste around late night vending areas at a later meeting due to the controversy and ambiguity of the problem.
