On a 5-1 vote, the Reno City Council approved new regulations for sidewalk vendors during their Jan. 17 meeting.
The updated ordinance decriminalizes street vendors in residential areas. However, it prohibits vendors from operating within 1,500 feet of resort hotels and convention facilities.
This means sidewalk vending is prohibited in downtown Reno.
During the meeting, councilmember Jenny Brekhus opposed the new ordinance because it impedes vendors from operating in downtown Reno.
“For me, the risk is greater of having folks in a very changed, challenged law, that you can’t be downtown vending, where it’s the exact place you want to vend. I think it’s very sad, I think it’s detrimental to their interest, to the community interest,” Brekhus said.
The ordinance also reclassifies sidewalk vending as a standard license, and removes assigned locations, background checks and fingerprints.
The change was made to comply with Senate Bill 92, which was approved during the 2023 Nevada Legislative Session.
The “Nevada street vendor law” requires specific guidelines for vendors in Washoe and Clark counties, including not being able to operate near a resort hotel.
Currently, the city of Reno has its own rules for sidewalk vendors, but an update was needed to match the new state law.
Lance Ferrato, director of business licensing, said they’re hoping this new ordinance will lessen the barriers to entry.
“We’ve got this state law, and we have to adhere by it. And I know, the general intent of that bill was to lessen the barriers, and we’re trying to do that as best we can,” Ferrato said.
In the next few weeks, the city will post a map on their website displaying the zones where a person may engage in sidewalk vending.
But before securing a business license from the city, interested sidewalk vendors must obtain a health permit from Northern Nevada Public Health (NNPH).
To sell food, vendors are required to comply with certain regulations, such as operating a mobile cart with a sink for handwashing, and heating and refrigeration equipment.
In an interview with KUNR in December, Joelle Gutman Dodson, government affairs liaison for Northern Nevada Public Health and member of the Task Force for Safe Sidewalk Vending, said those regulations are not new and are already in place.
“We currently allow for street food vending under the category of mobile food unit or portable food unit. And we always have, so none of our regulations have changed or been updated as a result of SB 92,” Gutman Dodson said.
The district’s main goal is to help street vendors while preventing foodborne illness outbreaks, Gutman Dodson said.
Northern Nevada Public Health is also working on developing payment plans for sidewalk vendors.
The city of Reno and NNPH said they do not plan to increase inspections and are working on bilingual outreach in the community.
