Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : Regulation of Peddlers Tightened : Commerce: The city will issue licenses and strengthen requirements for roadside vendors, who fear higher costs.

Don’t be surprised if the price of amber-tinted sunglasses, large ceramic vases and Oriental-style throw rugs begins to go up here.

These are just some of the products sold along Santa Clarita’s roadsides, where vendors will soon face stricter licensing requirements and stiff fines for failure to obtain a city permit to peddle their wares.

City Council members voted 5 to 0 Tuesday night to require city permits for peddlers and solicitors in Santa Clarita, updating a much looser ordinance taken over from Los Angeles County in 1987. Permits now will be issued by the city rather than the county, but the program and its enforcement will still be administered by the county.

City officials hope to crack down on sellers who don’t take out the necessary permits, which cost $125 for the first year and $45 for subsequent years. The new ordinance, which goes into effect in mid-October, also establishes fines of $500 for first-time violations and $1,000 for subsequent violations.

“Is this going to do the job?” asked Councilwoman Jan Heidt. “Is this going to allow the Sheriff’s Department to arrest these people operating illegally out of shopping carts?”

Heidt, owner of a small bookstore, echoed the frustration of business owners who feel they are being undercut by peddlers and of residents who don’t want solicitors knocking on their doors.

A Newhall resident told the council she once enjoyed buying corn on the cob and ice cream from vendors who walked through her community with food carts. But she said she was sickened at seeing a seller stop and urinate on the ground, then resume his rounds.

Sunglasses, vases, rugs, stuffed animals, framed posters and various food products are some of the items offered from the side of the road at different times of the year. Santa Clarita also was swamped by T-shirt vendors after the Jan. 17 earthquake.

Some vendors say they support stricter enforcement of the licensing requirements but are wary of additional fees.

Terry Ramsey, owner of the Fresh Berries fruit stand on Soledad Canyon Road, said she already pays about $600 in annual fees.

“Is the council aware of the fees we are already paying the county?” Ramsey asked. “I think you should keep in mind that we are small businesses.”

The City Council is scheduled to review the ordinance and its enforcement 90 days after the law goes into effect.