Over a dozen displaced street vendors from the El Salvador Corridor appeared before the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday to ask for a solution.
Two Guys Plaza used to rent its parking lot to street vendors until the city took legal action against the landlord the week of Jan. 1, saying the lot was not zoned for that type of use.
“We’re not asking for anything more than for them to let us work,” vendor Delfia Perez said. “I have a family of eight and everything depends on me because I’m the one who pays the rent and works.”
El Salvador Corridor Association Director Raul Claros said 126 vendors have been displaced.
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“So we’re asking, directly, the city attorney to give us a six-month extension at Two Guys Plaza,” Claros said.
Some of the vendors who formerly sold at Two Guys Plaza moved to Vermont Avenue, where there are already vendors. The influx of new vendors — especially those who have set up across the street near the police station — has caused clashes with law enforcement, according to the vendors.
“We understand that this corridor, this area is an economic engine for a lot of families, and we're not trying to stop that,” District 1 Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez said. “We're trying to make sure that we can bring more credibility and infrastructure so that it's sustainable and it lasts long term.”
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Hernandez said she cannot speak about any legal action that has been taken, but that she is committed to finding a place for vendors in the El Salvador Corridor.
Claros called for a street vendor pilot program.
“I have not seen this proposed vendor pilot program, but I do believe that we need to do it — whatever we can within our city power to create a zone, an area where we invest in the infrastructure of our vendors,” Hernandez said. “Whether it’s collecting the grease, whether it’s power washing, whether it’s creating a permanent infrastructure like a shade area, a vending area.”
But Claros said the El Salvador Corridor Association did not receive the response they were seeking after appearing at Wednesday’s city council meeting.
The LA City Council attorney declined to comment for this story.
