DANA POINT : Council Adopts Ban on Street Vendors

To the delight of a group of residents from the city’s Lantern Village district, the City Council last week adopted an ordinance banning street vendors from all public places.

Vendors such as those operating lunch trucks on private property will not be affected by the ordinance.

The council vote was 3 to 1, with Councilwoman Eileen Krause dissenting. Councilman Bill Bamattre was absent.

The council action was praised by several residents of the Lantern Village area, who had complained to the city that street vendors have been selling their goods on residential streets during all hours of the day and night.

“I really appreciate the council’s work on this,” said resident John Kutschka. “We have enough noise, we have enough pollution, we have enough trash already.”

Resident Bruce Philbrick said the new ordinance would “make a world of difference.”

“Hopefully, this will never have to come up again,” Philbrick said.

Krause, however, said she disagreed with such an ordinance, claiming it had not been researched enough. She said some of the vendors provide a valuable service.

“I don’t like stopping the vending done in commercial and industrial areas,” Krause said after the meeting. “No one provided the information to tell us how many of these vendors are used in public places in the city. If they exist, we’ve just cut out an honest piece of business.”

She agreed, however, that vendors have no place in residential areas.

“I have no problem with cutting out vendors in residential areas; they’re a nuisance,” she said.