Students seeking food after bar time may have fewer options if the Vending Oversight Committee decides to eliminate Frances Street as one of the four late night vending areas.
The bar-populated street could possibly lose its late night vending hot spot as parking and noise issues are further researched.
The meeting Wednesday night attracted many concerned citizens, most of whom were street vendors or parking utility staff. Problems with parking spaces, residents, and late night traffic have all raised questions about the appropriateness of the location.
Rebecca Anderson, a property owner on Frances Street, said that late night vending has been extremely terrible for the residents and for parking, especially since most of the people searching for food are drunk.
Anderson also added she doesn’t see the need for so many carts from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m., especially since Milio’s, a popular sub joint, is located right there.
Many people at the meeting supported the possibility of moving the carts on Frances to the 700 block of State Street, better known as Library Mall.
Rosemary Lee, a long time resident of Madison and a member of the committee, did not feel moving the carts to Library Mall was necessary.
“I do not find that most of the people are drunk, and also, not everybody wants to eat a Milio’s sub,” Lee said. “They wouldn’t be there if there wasn’t a need for their product.”
The other three locations available to vendors late at night are the 700 block of State Street, the 400 block of North Broom Street, and the 100 and 300 blocks of West Johnson Street.
However, many vendors at the meeting said they prefer the Frances Street location because many bars are located near Frances Street, such as the Red Shed, Johnny O’s and Wando’s.
Bill Knobeloch, spokesperson for the Parking Utility department, described himself as “very pro-vendor,” but admitted the primary issues at night are lighting and traffic.
“We have a lot of commercial activity there, even at 2 or 4 o’clock in the morning,” Knobeloch said.
A great deal of discussion was spent addressing parking problems, due to the limited parking on what is already a narrow street.
Many vendors said they have seen multiple carts sitting in front of parking meters hours before opening to have a guaranteed space at night.
“Since there is no real area for vendors, we treat them poorly because they have to sit in front of meters sometimes all day or multiple days,” Knobeloch said.
Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, acknowledged there is a need for action, but the meeting did not end with a decision.
Verveer said there is a lack of evidence regarding the parking issues and more police reports, parking information, and increased monitoring was needed before making a decision.
“I’m not convinced that we would be, so to speak, throwing the baby out with the bathwater, by removing all vending on Frances street,” Verveer said. “As of now, I’m not convinced that we have enough data or information to do that.”
Among the vendors on Frances is Jin’s Chicken and Fish, an extremely popular stand that was relocated to Frances from Langdon in 2005. The popular stand often draws lines extending down the block and even into the street.
