Gaslamp Businesses want City to Crack Down on Illegal Street Vendors

SAN DIEGO - Business owners in San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter are concerned as the number of street vendors in the area continues to grow.

“We've had hot dog carts catch on fire," Michael Trimble, Executive Director of Gaslamp Quarter Association, told NBC 7. "A few weeks ago there was a hot dog cart that literally, propane caught on fire right in front of in front of our biggest nightclubs.”

Trimble says the group has fought long and hard to limit the amount of street vendors in the area.

“Every weekend, starting on Thursday all the way through Sunday, you'll see no less than 50 illegal vendors in the Gaslamp Quarter,” said Trimble.

Business owners in the 16 block district are also concerned about sanitary conditions as well as how the large number of vendors is causing a nuisance. The association is calling on the city to enforce the new street vendor ordinance which requires vendors to be permitted in most areas and prohibits them from operating in other areas.

No word yet on what the city plans to do.

Photo: Getty Images


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