City of Powell River council has put the brakes on changing locations where street vendors are allowed to set up.
The city held a public hearing on Thursday, May 16 about a zoning bylaw amendment that added additional locations on land owned by the city. The sites are the parking lot south of the Willingdon Beach area, two locations adjacent to the wharfinger building at the Wharf at Westview and another next to the north harbour, as well as in the Mowat Bay parking area. Staff recommended that two carts be allowed at all locations. At the wharf, the recommendation is one cart east of the wharfinger building, one cart west of the building and one cart adjacent to the north harbour.
Currently, street vending is permitted on land the city owns at the end of Courtenay Street and adjacent to the boat ramp in the north harbour, as well as on the southeast corner of Marine Avenue and Alberni Street.
Staff also recommended that the city establish a $200-a-month fee to operate a mobile cart on municipal property. Operators must also have a valid business licence.
Cleve Hamilton and Elaine Teichgraber, who operate Planet Cleve, have been allowed to be in the parking lot adjacent to Willingdon Beach. However, Hamilton said at the public hearing that they have moved their cart to the grass, because people have complained about the smell from the sani-station. “It’s been really good over there,” he said. “Until that issue can get resolved, maybe we can just stay there.”
The wharfinger pointed out that one of the locations at the Wharf at Westview is taking up a handicapped parking spot, Hamilton also said. “We feel we’re better off on the grass there too, rather than taking up parking spaces or a handicap spot,” he said.
However, the city has approved BC Ferries using the grassy area as a laydown area when construction on the terminal upgrade begins in June.
“If they do some work down there, then we can make some other arrangements and move it to somewhere else,” Hamilton said. “We feel that in conjunction with the wharfinger, we can come to some agreement.”
Hamilton also said the fee was too much. He said they were self-sufficient and were not using city services. “We feel that we’re great ambassadors,” he said. “We’re doing the city a service. We’re handing out tourist information.”
He also said the operation was weather dependent. “This is not something we can do for 12 months a year,” he said. “We’re suggesting just a flat yearly fee that we could maybe talk to staff about and figure out.”
Romeo Styles, who owns and operates a cart that sells fresh-cut fries, said some of the locations are not good for foot traffic. He said he thought the street vendors should work with staff to choose locations that would best serve the city and tourism.
Styles also said he opposed the fee. He’s done research into what other municipalities charge, he explained, including Gibsons, Sechelt, Parksville, Nanaimo, Comox and Campbell River. The only municipality that charges a fee is Sechelt, which has a $100 levy. The business licence fees are less than Powell River’s, Styles also said.
He would like council to reconsider having a fee, Styles said. “There haven’t been any street vendors here,” he said. “In the last 20 years, there have been two and they lasted six months.”
Styles, who has been operating his cart for four years, said street vending is weather dependent. Vendors would have to pay for 30 days in advance, but may only operate their carts for a week if the weather turns bad. “This fee will greatly impact our bottom line,” he said.
Styles also said he has spoken to a few people who are considering setting up carts. They said the fee would “annihilate a lot of our profit margins,” he said. “I don’t think it bodes well for people who are moving to Powell River that this is the only municipality other than Sechelt that is going to charge an exorbitant amount of money for a monthly fee, considering that our carts don’t use any city services.”
Adoption of the zoning bylaw amendment was on the council agenda for the meeting following the public hearing. However, council voted to postpone adoption and directed staff to meet with the street vendors and report back to council at its next meeting.
