"It’s not the crowd that’s the problem. It’s the table that’s drawing the crowd."
Any unpermitted tables or other objects that block traffic on sidewalks or in the right of way of the St. Pete Pier or the Grand Central and Edge districts may soon be put on notice.
A St. Petersburg City Council committee on Thursday advanced a proposal to expand the boundaries set by a 2019 ordinance that established a “prohibited zone” where those items aren’t allowed.
St. Petersburg Police legal counsel Laura Roe said there is an increasing number of unpermitted vendors, particularly in the popular areas of the St. Pete Pier, Grand Central and Edge districts, that are using tables or stands without a permit. They are in the right of way, inviting people to walk up to it, which creates a crowd that blocks the sidewalk and leads to safety issues.
Read more at the Tampa Bay Times