City Council Minutes 1999 11 03 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Michael McGowan, 1048 Pearl Street, Boulder, circulation director for the Daily Camera, distributed copies of median newspaper vendor rules that the Daily Camera abides by in the City of Boulder and encouraged Council to review them. He explained that he currently has five hawkers in the City of Louisville and does not have any plans to expand the program. He stated that the community endorses this program, as evidenced by the citizen who gave one hawker a ten-dollar tip earlier today. He explained that he has had hawkers in the City of Louisville since June and he has not received one negative response or comment from the public. The hawking program uses the same people, Monday through Friday, and does not hawk on the weekends. They do not sell unless the light is red, nor do they sell when there is snow or ice that contribute to safety issues. He stated that this is a way of promoting their Boulder County edition to the citizens of Louisville. He requested that the City grant the Daily Camera a six-month trial period and if there are any complaints, the program would be removed. Judy Pitt, 420 Lipan, Boulder, Colorado, stated that she has been serving coffee to the comer vendors for fourteen months. She explained that these vendors are not aggressive and do not shove papers in car windows. She stated that most of the vendors could not be in attendance tonight because they live in shelters or on the street. She explained that the vendors are trying to make a living and improve their lives. She presented Council with a list of signatures from eleven vendors who are asking Council to provide them with an opportunity to prove that the program can work. Davidson closed the public hearing and called for Council questions and comments. He stated that he has personally witnessed a hawker soliciting in the street who was almost hit by a car. He explained to McGowan that if the Daily Camera had approached the City of Louisville about their hawking program and implemented the rules of conduct earlier, the City might not be discussing this ordinance. He felt that public safety far outweighs the sale of newspapers. Mayer stated that one unfortunate effect of the ordinance would be the fund-raising by firefighters on Labor Day. He did not believe that the City would consider allowing the sale of other products, such as coffee, at a median site. He felt that there are some activities that are dangerous on their face and carrying on a vending operation from a median is asking for an accident to happen. He agreed with Goodman that it is a public safety issue and felt that the Ordinance is justified. Sisk stated that he could appreciate the comments made by Mr. McGowan. However, he questioned whether the City would allow Girl Scouts to sell cookies on street comers. He stated that he has also seen incidents where the hawkers were at risk. He agreed that the Ordinance would cause hardship for the individuals mentioned by Ms. Pitt. He suggested that the City provide off-street sites for vendors to hawk papers, etc. He felt that the Ordinance is necessary to protect citizens and hawkers alike. Howard agreed that newspaper hawking provides an opportunity for people to join the economy. He expressed concern about what he sees occurring in other communities, such as Denver. He stated that he often sees more than one newspaper hawking their wares in