Section 20-465.1. Street Vendor Review Panel  


Latest version.
  • a. There is hereby established
      a  street  vendor  review  panel  consisting of four members. Such panel
      shall include the commissioner  of  the  department  of  small  business
      services,  the  director  of  the  department  of  city planning and the
      commissioner of the department of transportation,  or  their  respective
      designees. Such panel shall also include a member appointed by the mayor
      upon  nomination by the speaker of the council.  The commissioner of the
      department of small business services or his or her designee shall serve
      as  chairperson.  The  departments  of  small  business  services,  city
      planning  and transportation shall provide such assistance as the street
      vendor review panel deems necessary and appropriate to enable such panel
      to carry out its responsibilities. In the same  manner  as  provided  in
      section  1043  of the city charter, the street vendor review panel shall
      promulgate, and may from time  to  time  amend,  rules  prohibiting  the
      operation  of  any general vending business or food vending business, as
      defined in chapter three of title seventeen of this code,  or  both,  on
      any  street, at any time, after making a determination that such vending
      business would constitute a serious and immediate threat to the  health,
      safety  and  well-being  of the public on the ground that such street at
      such time is regularly too congested by pedestrian or vehicular  traffic
      to  permit  the  operation  of  such business. No general vendor or food
      vendor, as defined in chapter three of  title  seventeen  of  the  code,
      shall vend on any such streets at any such times.
        b.  Requests  for  the  adoption or amendment of rules prohibiting the
      operation of any general vending business or food vending  business,  as
      defined  in  chapter  three of title seventeen of this code, or both, on
      any street, at any time, may be submitted to  the  commissioner  of  the
      department  of  small  business  services or his or her designee. Within
      sixty days after the submission  of  such  request,  the  street  vendor
      review  panel  shall convene to determine either to deny such request in
      writing, stating the reasons for denial, or to state  its  intention  to
      initiate rulemaking, by a specified date, concerning the subject of such
      request. In initiating a rulemaking, the panel shall not be bound by the
      streets  or  times requested, and may modify such streets and such times
      at its discretion. If the panel has stated  the  intention  to  initiate
      rulemaking,  it  shall publish such proposed rule for comment and public
      hearing in the same manner as  provided  in  subdivisions  b  and  d  of
      section  1043  of  the city charter. After consideration of the relevent
      comments presented, the panel may adopt a final rule  relating  to  such
      streets  and such times pursuant to subdivisions d and e of section 1043
      of the city charter.
        c. Copies of any rules promulgated pursuant to this section  shall  be
      mailed  to  each licensed general vendor or licensed food vendor, by the
      department or the department of health and mental hygiene, respectively,
      by regular mail at the last home address provided by the vendor  to  the
      department  or  the department of health and mental hygiene and shall be
      annexed to each license or renewal issued to any general vendor or  food
      vendor.
        d.  Nothing  herein contained shall exempt any general vendor from the
      provisions of subdivision g of section 20-465 of this subchapter.