City Council

a. AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 5.06 (“SIDEWALK VENDING”) AND\nCHAPTER 12.14 (“CAMPING AND STORAGE OF PERSONAL PROPERTY ON\nPUBLIC PROPERTY”) OF THE SIGNAL HILL MUNICIPAL CODE, RELATING\nTO SIDEWALK VENDING AND CAMPING\nSummary:\nThe City previously established a permit and licensing procedures related to\nsidewalk vending, and ensured compliance with federal, state, and local laws,\nsuch as food safety requirements and compliance with the Americans with\nDisabilities Act. Despite these standards, the City has seen a rise in\nunpermitted sidewalk vending and activities that pose unique risks to the health\nand safety of the public. Some sidewalk vendors establish large-scale\noperations that block the public right-of-way, empty trash and food waste on\nstreets and sidewalks, and operate in unsanitary conditions. The first change to\nthe City’s Municipal Code reflected in the proposed Ordinance is to amend the\nSidewalk Vending Program to provide the City with the authority to impound\nvending equipment that poses an imminent environmental, health, or safety\nhazard.\nThe proposed Ordinance also seeks to amend the City’s Municipal Code to\nreflect recent decisions made by the United States Supreme Court. In recent\nyears, two Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decisions, Martin v. City of Boise (9th\nCir. 2018) 902 F.3d 1031 (“Martin”) and Johnson v. City of Grants Pass (9th Cir.\n2023) 72 F.4th 868 (“Grants Pass”), significantly affected the permissible scope\nof local regulation of public camping. On June 28, 2024, the Supreme Court\noverruled these decisions and opened the door for cities to again enforce laws\nregulating public camping. The references to Martin are now obsolete, requiring\nthe City to amend its Code to reflect the current legal landscape. The proposed\nOrdinance removes any references to Martin and makes no addition to the City’s\nregulations of public camping.\nStrategic Plan Goal(s):\nGoal No. 2 Community Safety: Maintain community safety by supporting\npublic safety services, and increasing emergency preparedness.\nGoal No. 4 Infrastructure: Maintain and improve the City’s physical\ninfrastructure, water system and recreational spaces.\nRecommendations:\n1. Declare that the Ordinance is exempt from the California Environmental\nQuality Act (“CEQA”) pursuant to State CEQA Guidelines section 15061(b)\n(3) because it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the\nOrdinance may have a significant effect on the environment. (14 Cal. Code\nRegs., § 15061(b)(3).) The Ordinance does not authorize any development\nor other activity that could result in a significant effect on the environment;\nand\n2. Introduce an Ordinance, entitled:\nAN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SIGNAL HILL\nAMENDING CHAPTER 5.06 (“SIDEWALK VENDING”) AND CHAPTER\n12.14 (“CAMPING AND STORAGE OF PERSONAL PROPERTY ON\nPUBLIC PROPERTY”) OF THE SIGNAL HILL MUNICIPAL CODE,\nRELATING TO SIDEWALK VENDING AND CAMPING.