§ 961-211 — Restrictions on operation

Sec. 961-211. - Restrictions on operation.

(a) Each vendor's cart licensee, and his or her agents and employees, shall comply with the restrictions on cart operation provided in this section. (b) Limitations on selling include the following: (1) Only food may be carried on or sold from a licensed food cart, only flowers from a licensed flower cart, only frozen food from a licensed frozen food cart, and only merchandise from a licensed merchandise cart; (2) Such retail sales shall not be accomplished by crying out or hawking; (3) A device may not be used that would amplify sound, and in any area not in a commercial transaction zone, attention may not be drawn to such retail sales by any aural means or a light-producing device; (4) Such retail sales may not be made to any person in or on any motorized vehicle; and (5) Beverages, dispensed in disposable cans, shall have any separable opening tabs removed at the time the cans are sold, unless otherwise requested by the purchaser. (c) Prohibited locations include the following: (1) No cart may be located in any public park or plaza, without written authorization from the governmental agency with general jurisdiction or control over such park or plaza; (2) The operator of a cart may not dispense food on the same side of the street within fifty (50) feet of a primary entry way into a ground level retail food establishment; (3) No cart may be located nor any such retail sales be made in that part of a right-of-way utilized for motor vehicle traffic (commonly referred to as a street), a street median strip or an alleyway; (4) No cart may be placed nor may such retail sales be made within twenty (20) feet of any posted bus stop, taxi stand, crosswalk, driveway or alleyway, within twenty (20) feet of the point at which the right-of-way lines of two (2) or more streets intersect or within six (6) feet of any building entrance, display window or walk-up window; (5) No cart may be parked or located nor may food, frozen food, flowers or merchandise be dispensed in a manner that would significantly impede or prevent the use of any city property, or that would endanger the safety or property of the public; (6) A cart with a franchise zone license shall be operated only within the franchise zone allocated under section 961-303, or in any area not designated a franchise zone or commercial transaction zone; a cart with a commercial transaction zone license shall be operated only within the designated commercial transaction zone; and a cart with a special event license shall be operated only within the geographic boundaries of the special event; and (7) The location of each merchandise vendor's cart not in a commercial transaction zone shall be approved by the license administrator. (d) Operational requirements include the following: (1) The licensee, his or her agents and employees shall be required to obey the commands of law enforcement officers or firemen with respect to activity carried out on city property, including, where possible, the removal of the cart and cessation of such retail sales; (2) Wheeled carts not located in a commercial transaction zone must be removed from city property when such retail sales are not being conducted; (3) No wheeled cart may be permanently or temporarily affixed to any fixed object, and no stand may be permanently or temporarily affixed to any object above ground level, including but not limited to buildings, trees, signs, telephone poles, streetlight poles, traffic signal poles or fire hydrants; (4) Carts may be placed and any such retail sales may be made only on sidewalks that provide at least fourteen (14) feet of width from the curb line to the property line; provided that, a person licensed under this article may petition the license administrator to allow operation of a cart on a specified sidewalk having a width of less than fourteen (14) feet; such petition may be approved by the license administrator only after the department of public works and the department of business and neighborhood services have approved the petition; (5) Each cart is to be operated by no more than three (3) persons, and shall not be left unattended; (6) No cart may be used to advertise any product or service that is not authorized to be sold from that cart; and (7) Carts not located in a commercial transaction zone may not make use of any public or private electrical outlet while in operation or while located on city property. (e) General requirements include the following: (1) Efforts shall be made by the licensee to protect city property against littering; each cart must have an adequate trash receptacle that is emptied sufficiently often to allow disposal of litter and waste by the public at any time; the trash receptacle on the cart shall not be emptied into trash receptacles owned by the city; and liquid from a cart may not be discharged on or in a city sewer or drain or elsewhere on city property, nor on private property without the express written consent of the owner thereof; (2) Pedestrians shall not be exposed to any undue safety or health hazard nor shall a public nuisance be created; (3) Each cart shall be maintained free and clear of dirt, and finishes shall not be chipped, faded or unduly marred; (4) Foods that present a substantial likelihood that liquid matter, particles or part of the food will drop to the street or sidewalk during the process of carrying or eating the food shall be sold in proper containers; and (5) All carts licensed to sell food must place a nonporous material on the sidewalk beneath their carts in such a manner as to prevent spillage from the cart, stains or other damage to the area around the carts. Acceptable materials include artificial turf, grass mats, or indoor/outdoor carpeting.

(G.O. 215, 1995, § 1; G.O. 15, 2001, § 145; G.O. 63, 2009, § 167; G.O. 41, 2016, § 2)