Frustrated Castaic Road business owners, some saying they were a few more bad months away from going out of business, aired their grievances Thursday at the Castaic Library during a county-hosted meeting with public agencies involved in street-vending oversight.  A half-dozen California High way Patrol officers, a handful of sheriff’s deputies and representatives for L.A. County Public Health, Public Works and 5th District Supervisor Kathryn Barger were there to share and hear concerns about the situation.  On the problem, attendees in the library’s community room seemed to agree: Many unlicensed street sellers are now operating with impunity thanks to a pair of Senate bills, 946 and 972, which were intended to decriminalize the industry.  James Dragan, the Environmental Health Services manager for L.A. County who oversees street-vending regulation, said one of the unintended consequences of the efforts to legalize street vendors is that language meant to address merchandise in the county’s code is being interpreted to include food.   That’s not the intention of the law’s language, Dragan said, but the challenge food inspectors are running up against, which was shared by the officers in the room, is that there’s little recourse when violations occur.  Dragan shared data to indicate how the problems for storefront owners were growing: During the previous fiscal year ending June 30, there were 1,547 completed complaint inspections. There have been 1,334 this year with more than three months left.    Deputy Mike Noyola, the Crime Prevention Unit leader for the Castaic region, said the deputies are staying on top of the issue as much as they can, but when citations are issued, they’re often inconsequential.  Even when they seize something, which can happen when no one claims ownership of a vending cart, the support and resources behind some of the larger street-vending operations mean another is likely to pop right back up in its place.  Deputies’ efforts are continuous, he said, but he didn’t have confidence that the street carts they address one day wouldn’t be back the next unless there’s a criminal enforcement mechanism.  One longtime 7-Eleven franchisee, who did not share his name, said he would be willing to share his financial statements to prove how bad the vendors are hurting store owners. He said that, one month, he made about $500.  Another franchisee said he might as well tell his landlord he’s going to sell food from a cart in front of his business if people can sell food on the land he rents without paying.  One resident asked if the budget for the agency that handles street vending has been increased in the past couple of years to deal with the growing problem. It had not, officials said.   However, Stephanie English, a liaison for Barger, said there’s not much that can be done until there are more teeth to the legislation. She said she would ask the county to look at the possibility for more enforcement.  English said the business owners have Barger’s support, which is why she called the meeting.  At one point, she described the county’s current strategy as focused on targeting the larger operations that use smaller street vendors like replaceable pawns. That’s where they’re having some success, she said, likening the strategy to the nation’s war on drugs policy.  “They’re trying to cut it off at the root cause,” she said. “If you stop the drugs from coming in, people will stop dying of drugs, dying from overdoses. If you stop the vendors for the cartels from producing and distributing, then it’ll stop the illegal vending.”  Andrea Rosenthal, who was there representing the office of Assemblywoman Pilar Schiavo, D-Chatsworth, said she would relay the need for more enforcement resources and the concerns over the unintended consequences to Sacramento.  The post Castaic proprietors air concerns over street vending  appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal. ...read more read less