Experiment Includes Pushcart Vendors

Pushcart vendors will soon be part of the Santa Monica street scene.

The Santa Monica City Council has approved an experimental program to permit outdoor vending at six downtown locations and two in Palisades Park.

Vending will be limited to sales of food only, and the program will have a one-year trial basis.

Although all council members supported the plan, there was concern about whether it is legal to limit vendors to selling food. Other cities have faced legal problems when they tried to regulate the type or quality of merchandise sold by a vendor. But the city attorney’s office said the motion limiting vending to food is defensible in court, and the council passed the motion unanimously.

Some street vending is already permitted on the Santa Monica Pier and in the outdoor mall at Third Street.