HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-19-2013ac heitzman ph15
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Goodwin, Heather
From:
Sent:
To:
Cc:
Subject:
Marx, Jan
Tuesday, November 1-9,2013 8:23 AM
Suzanne Heitzman; Smith, Kathy; Christianson, Carlyn; Carpenter, Dan;Ashbaugh, John
Mejia, Anthony; Goodwin, Heather
RE: Mobile vendor
Thank you for your input. I am including our city clerk staff in this response, so that your email is posted on the website
as agenda correspondence for tonight's meeting.
All the Best,
Jan
Jan Howell Max
Mayor of San Luis Obispo
(BOs) 781-7120 or (805) 541-2716
From : Suzanne Heitzman [suzanne. heitzman@gmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, November L9,20L3 8:06 AM
To: Max, Jan; Smith, Kathy; Christianson, Carlyn; Carpenter, Dan; Ashbaugh, John
Subject: Mobile vendor
Please find my letter attached.
Suzanne
AGENDA
CORRESPONDENCE
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1
November 19,2013
City Council
Katy Lipchitz,
City Administrator
San Luis Obispo, CA
I am long time resident of San Luis Obispo and currently reside in the neighborhood
behind Laguna Middle School. Today I am writing to you about the proposed mobile
vendor ordinance before council.
I have been following this issue with concern. There are several problems with the
ordinance that will affect both the quality of life and potential health and safety in our
neighborhood, both residents and children in school.
The hours of operation behind proposed for the vendors--from 7:00am to 7:00pm are an
issue. They are excessive for a residential neighborhood.
My neighborhood is behind Laguna Middle School. Like most schools in San Luis
Obispo it is under built for the volume of cars that drop and pick up children by today's
concern. There is extreme traffic congestion during the morning and afternoon hours on
the corners of LOVR and Laguna Lane, and the internee section of La Virada and
Laguna Lane. The traffic congestion is a particular concern at these two intersections as
it is the sole ingress and egress for about about 100 residences in the neighborhood.
Should there be an emergency and need to evacuate our neighborhood during school
pick up/drop off time, we would not be able to get in or out of our neighborhood. With
the proposed vendor ordinance, vendors would be allowed to park on the city streets
during the same highly congested hours competing with the parents for scarce parking
spaces. Our access out of the neighborhood would be blocked in the event of a fire or
other emergency. The sole outlet poses daily safety issues, and a potential crisis in the
event of a significant emergency.
There are other concerns regarding the ordinance. This is a quiet, residential
neighborhood. We bought our homes with an expectation we would be living in a
tranquil, quiet neighborhood. Mobile vendors will bring in transient traffic, most likely
increase litter, and possible noise with chimes from multiple ice cream trucks. Children
and their parents will trespass on our private property. This behavior is currently
problematic with one ice cream truck operating outside Laguna Middle School.
The other grave concern has to do with the quality of food sold from a vendor truck.
While most of the country is focusing on feeding children more healthful food, vendor
trucks are notably processed foods, fast foods, refined sugars and high fat. The food is
not healthy for children. San Luis Obispo is going the opposite direction of the rest of
the country to reduce rates of diabetes and obesity in children by allowing increased
access to poor quality food.
There will be no enforcement of the city code around the mobile vendors. City resources
and priorities do not support it. Residents will be expected to tolerate violations of the
permits or School officials do not have authority of the children off campus to address
potential misbehavior.
It is quite likely that property values will decrease in school neighborhoods where it will
be popular to park a mobile vendor. With increased noise, transient traffic, and litter, the
school neighborhoods, already struggling under the weight of too much traffic during
school drop offlpick up, will suffer further.
This ordinance if passed will allow a few individuals to profit at the at the expense of
safety of our residential communities.
Respectfully,
Suzanne Heitzman
San Luis Obispo, CA
Suzanne. heitzman @ gmail.com