The Stockton City Council recently took a significant step toward updating regulations surrounding street and sidewalk vending, advancing amendments to the municipal code and proposing changes to the city’s fee schedule.
The proposed plans would amend several sections of the Stockton Municipal Code such as Titles 5, 8, and 12 and repeal Chapter 12.76. Additionally, the council is considering a resolution to update the fiscal year 2024–25 fee schedule for street vendor violations and is authorizing city staff to take appropriate implementation actions.
District 4 Councilmember Mario Enriquez spoke about the importance of foundational updates. “A lot of basics we need to update first while we’re continuing to listen from the public,” he said. “You know there was a lot of misinformation… folks thought that we were trying to shut down Angel Cruz Park, which is far from the truth.”
Enriquez pointed out that the city’s efforts are not meant to penalize vendors but rather to align Stockton with state law while educating the community. “We want to be able to be in state alignment,” he said. “We also don’t want to feel that we’re attacking our street vendors.”
Key takeaways from recent town halls include the need for translated materials, support for undocumented individuals, and sensitivity toward cultural and language barriers.
“A big part of it was we have to have the basic translations… not just translate text-wise, but also if there’s any audio capability because not everybody can read or write text,” Enriquez said. “We have to really break that down to ensure that we’re really asking for identification… it could be if you have a passport of Mexico… if you can present that, that’s great.”
District 1 Councilmember Michele Padilla stressed the need for a balanced approach that respects vendors while also maintaining neighborhood integrity.
“We are all one. We’re all in this together city and we do need to be cognizant of our neighbors,” Padilla said. “The majority of our parks are located within neighborhoods, families, houses, traffic…”
Padilla addressed concerns raised about the $60 fee tied to vendor permits, clarifying misconceptions. “There was a perception that that $60 is going towards public safety code and enforcement, but in reality… it really is just for our infrastructure,” she said. “Families love to enjoy the parks, you know they like to see green grass and not empty dirt.”
She emphasized the ordinance’s citywide implications and urged continued outreach beyond Angel Cruz Park.
“We just wanna make things right and make sure that all voices are heard,” she said. “There’s vending in every single district… I hope that many more people show up in the other areas.”
Councilmember Michael Blower of District 3 echoed the need to dispel confusion and improve communication. “It sounds like the [street] vendors wanna work with us,” he said. “They just need to know how. So I think that that educational component is just huge.”
Blower also called for more user-friendly tools, particularly online. “It does seem like we’re in 2025, we should be able to figure out getting things online,” he said. “If we got a dedicated page on the city website dealing with street vendors and something where they could just find their language and have it all be translated… I think that would be tremendously helpful.”
Councilmembers widely agreed on the importance of multilingual support. While forms can be translated into other languages using tools like Google Translate, city staff noted the challenge lies in vendors completing applications in English to avoid miscommunication.
As the process moves forward, Councilmembers signaled their commitment to thoughtful revisions over the summer. “I think this is a great opportunity,” Enriquez said. “What, 34 years that we have a council that is finally gonna be able to look at it in a way [that] can be manageable for both sides, can be educational and can also be easy to absorb.”
The revised plans are expected to return to the Legislative Committee before final adoption. In the meantime, city leaders plan to continue gathering public input through additional town halls and ongoing community engagement.
Background
The City of Stockton has been taking steps to update its street vending regulations to bring them into compliance with California state laws SB 946 and SB 972, which were enacted in 2018 and 2022. These laws aimed to promote economic opportunity while ensuring public safety and accessibility in public spaces.
The proposed plan updates, introduced during a recent City Council meeting, are designed to eliminate outdated municipal code provisions that conflict with state law. The revisions would create comprehensive guidelines for licensing, location restrictions, waste management, and enforcement for sidewalk and park vending.
“Regulation of the sale of food and merchandise on public sidewalks will benefit the City by promoting entrepreneurship, while ensuring the protection of the public health, safety, and welfare,” the proposal states.
SB 946 decriminalized sidewalk vending by limiting penalties to administrative infractions and prohibiting cities from enforcing more corrective measures such as misdemeanors. It also set guidelines for permitting and emphasized that vending in parks and on sidewalks cannot be completely prohibited, though cities have the authority to implement reasonable restrictions.
However, Stockton’s current municipal code, or SMC, has not been updated to reflect these changes. As a result, vendors and city officials have faced confusion and enforcement challenges, particularly around popular locations like Angel Cruz Park and Victory Park where vendor activity has surged.
The increase in vending has brought economic benefits, such as creating opportunities for entrepreneurship and diversifying the local retail landscape. But it has also strained public infrastructure and generated concerns about traffic congestion, sanitation, and damage to park landscaping and irrigation systems.
The proposal acknowledges these issues, noting that “parks and nature areas are a finite and valuable resource within the city” and that many public spaces “have inadequate facilities such as restrooms, water, sanitary services, and pedestrian and vehicle traffic flow necessary to support commercial vending activities.”
To address these challenges, the new plans outline specific spatial requirements and operational guidelines. For example, vending equipment must not exceed five by seven feet, and vendors must leave a five-foot clearance for pedestrian passage. No generators, water hookups, or open flames will be allowed, and vendors are required to keep their area clean within a 25-foot radius.
Compact Mobile Food Operations (CMFOs), a vendor category created by SB 972, will also be formally recognized under the new rules, which currently lack any regulatory framework for this group.
The ordinance also introduces a fee structure to fund enforcement and maintenance. Vendors will be charged a $60 public property use fee if they operate in parks or adjacent sidewalks. Violations of vending rules will result in escalating fines, starting at $100 and reaching up to $1,000 for repeated offenses within a calendar year.
“Any vendor found to be operating without having first obtained a business license, or within a park without having paid a public property use fee… may be assessed an administrative fine,” the proposal reads.
Licensing requirements will also be clarified. Vendors must obtain a business license, display it prominently, and, if selling food, show proof of compliance with state and county health regulations.
Public safety also remains a priority under the updated and ongoing revisions of the proposal.
Vendors are prohibited from obstructing traffic or sidewalks, operating near schools or major venues during certain hours, and conducting transactions with moving vehicles. The ordinance also bans the vending of tobacco, alcohol, and adult-oriented materials.
Importantly, the updated revisions and plans comes at no cost to the City’s General Fund. If approved by the City Council, the associated fees will be incorporated into the Fiscal Year 2024–2025 schedule.
Ultimately, the proposed updates aim to align Stockton’s regulations with state law while providing a clear, enforceable framework to support safe and successful vending.
“The requirements set forth by this Chapter are necessary to ensure vending operations do not adversely impact the public welfare,” the proposal states, “that food vendors adhere to State and County public health requirements, and there are free and safe flows of vehicular and pedestrian traffic in the public right-of-way where vendors are conducting their business.”