LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – Clark County announced that it gave its first street vendor license, weeks after an ordinance created a path for sidewalk stands to be licensed and enacted restrictions on where they can operate.
Clark County posted the video of Manuel Carrera being handed a business license, Southern Nevada Health District permit, and a membership to the Vegas Chamber.
FOX5 was the only station to speak to Carrera, who said his stand will be posted outside a gas station by Cactus Avenue and Dean Martin Drive. His son, Alan, will be running the stand while also going to summer school.
“In L.A., I used to do the same thing. It’s sometimes it’s a little easier when you’re familiar with requirements. For a person that has never done this, that’s where they fear that they’re not doing the right thing, or they’re putting a lot of pressure on them. But at the end of the day, it’s just normal steps. I don’t think it’s something that you cannot do, it is possible,” Carrera said.
Carrera had a stand from Los Angeles with a built-in setup that the SNHD requires: a hand-washing station.
SNHD also requires each street vendor to prep foods in a commercial kitchen. Carrera owns LV Michoacana, an ice cream shop by Lake Mead Blvd. and Pecos Road, and will prep food there.
Carrera’s son, Alan, has big hopes for expansion in the Valley.
“I‘m excited. I hope to make it even like a franchise, have multiple of these carts, do multiple events. Just shoot for the stars, I guess,” Alan Carrera said.
County officials said three street vendors have applied for a license and one has been approved so far. Officials said the process can take 30 to 45 days, depending on the inspections and upgrades required by the health district.
Carrera fronted costs for licensing that street vendor advocates with Make the Road Nevada say that many still cannot afford:
- Nevada Secretary of State Business License, $200
- Clark County Business License, $150 + $45 application fee
- SNHD Health Permit: $376 annual fee and $487 review fee
- Limited Liability Insurance
Health officials may still require various health and sanitation upgrades from vendors for their carts. All vendors must prepare food in commercial kitchens– a cost that Eduardo Moreno, a local street vendor, told FOX5 he cannot afford.
After hearing about the news today, Moreno tells FOX5 there are still too many financial hurdles.
“I am scared, because how I am going to survive? I am the only person that supports my house. I would rather risk a fine than get a permit because it is not going to be possible,” Moreno said on April 25.
Enforcement continues to stop illegal street vendors from operations. Since April 30, county officials said they have issued 74 violation notices to vendors, all with written warnings. Officials said they have seized 9,000 pounds of food from the streets, from meat to other items.
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