The City of Vancouver says it is cracking down on the sale of illegal goods on sidewalks in the city’s Downtown Eastside.
A stretch of Hastings Street near Main Street has long been known as a place where items are sold by street vendors, with the Vancouver Police Department (VPD) expressing concern about the sale of stolen items there as far back as 2014.
The city says that an increase in illegal street vending is leading to a “violent shoplifting epidemic” throughout the city, as well as safety concerns for pedestrians and those with mobility needs in the area.
It says that police officers and city staff will now begin strictly enforcing bylaws that state that merchandise cannot be sold on the sidewalk by unauthorized vendors, which could include fines for unpermitted vending.
However, advocates and the local business improvement association (BIA) say the crackdown will be ineffective, and will simply displace the problem to nearby areas.
Brian Montague, a former VPD officer and current city councillor, is in favour of the enforcement. He said the issue of illegal street vending in the Downtown Eastside is “unsustainable and untenable.”
“Over past mayors and councils, there has been a relaxation of enforcement and it hasn’t worked,” he told Stephen Quinn, the host of CBC’s The Early Edition.
“We’re seeing the situation in the Downtown Eastside and surrounding neighbourhoods getting worse and worse.”
Montague said that the sale of stolen goods on Hastings Street is leading to increased gang activity, as people are being forced to resell items under the threat of violence.
In response to questions about how police will determine which goods are stolen and which are not, Montague acknowledged enforcement might be tough for officers, and said they will have to use their discretion as needed.
In a statement, a City of Vancouver spokesperson said they recognize there are many vulnerable people in the Downtown Eastside who rely on vending to supplement their income.
“Staff are actively exploring ways that the city could work with the Downtown Eastside community economic development organizations to expand alternate, safer, and legal pathways for low-barrier income generation,” the spokesperson said.
Root causes not addressed: BIA
Landon Hoyt, the executive director of the Hastings Crossing BIA, said the city’s crackdown is a Band-Aid solution that does little to address the real drivers of street vending.
“This type of enforcement doesn’t really get to the root causes of why people are vending, which is really a symptom of poverty at the end of the day,” he told CBC News.
Hoyt said previous crackdowns have resulted in street vendors being displaced to nearby streets and neighbouring Chinatown.
“What we really need the city and partners to do in this situation is work on a comprehensive community economic development plan that recognizes that income generation is an important way to lift people out of poverty,” he said.
“That includes vending, whether that be salvaged goods or handmade goods, you know?”
Hoyt said the BIA has previously been in support of temporarily sanctioned areas for street vendors to operate, where there is a vetting system to ensure no criminal activity takes place.
One of those areas is the current iteration of the Downtown Eastside Street Market, which sees around a dozen vendors in an indoor space at 305 Main St.
Sean Miles is the director of the Binners’ Project, a charity that runs the market on behalf of the city.
He said vendors who apply to be in the market have to go through a probationary period and aren’t allowed to sell certain items, like electronics, amid concerns of stolen goods.
“We’re not currently at full [capacity] and we could take more vendors, and we are actively seeking to do outreach to vendors in the community to see if we can bring more people in,” he said.
Miles acknowledged that there will be vendors who won’t fit in an indoor space. The previous iteration of the outdoor market had around 30 to 40 vendors compared to the 20 that would fit inside.
“I still think there is a need to have other options for folks to help them, kind of, move away from problematic issues of vending,” Miles said. “But we’re happy that we’ve been able to support some of those vendors.”