Due to worries about crowding, vendors who have historically relied on the yearly Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe in the East End for revenue will not be permitted to re-enter the Navigation esplanade this year.
The celebration of La Virgen de Guadalupe has drawn hundreds of people to the East End’s Our Lady of Guadalupe church for approximately 40 years. To offer tourists food, flowers for the virgin, and other items, dozens of vendors would set up shop on the Navigation esplanade alongside the parishioners waiting in line to pay their respects.
However, between 50 and 60 of the vendors who regularly participated in the festival were forced to relocate this year after the East End District ceased renting out sites to them.
According to a written statement released by the East End District, which oversees local infrastructure projects and the esplanade itself during community events, “We have reserved the Esplanade at Navigation as an open space as part of our commitment to ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for all attendees.”
Their message goes on, “We want to preserve the area’s accessibility and safety while minimizing the impact on the surrounding neighborhood by keeping the Esplanade free from vendor overcrowding.”
Although they won’t be permitted to set up on the esplanade, merchants can still find other rental spots, primarily from private companies that have parking lots along the Navigation route.
Regarding how the shift caught her company, Taquiza La Charra, off guard, vendor Elizabeth Valencia remarked, “Nos agarro por sorpresa.”
After erecting their stand on the esplanade for almost a decade, Valencia and their family have chosen not to take part this year.
Valencia remarked in Spanish, “It felt like they threw a bucket of cold water on us because we were used to going every year.”
About 22,000 people attended the event last year, which is more than the 19,900 that the East End District recorded in 2019, according to Rick Cardenas, the district’s director of external affairs. Similar throngs are anticipated for this year’s festivities.
According to Cardenas, the East End District has long controlled the usage of the esplanade to give vendors a more structured path, even though it has no formal link with the Catholic church’s celebration.
Cardenas stated that after years of observing the overcrowding, particularly in the sidewalks and other areas close to the esplanade, they made the decision to let other local parties handle the vendor situation and save the esplanade for people who want a place to eat, sit with their families, or just wait for mass to start.
However, he stated that there is still a problem with vendors setting up in other locations without securing a space or obtaining the necessary licenses to sell food or other products.
Cardenas stated, “We want to try to support churches and any other organization.” According to what I understand, the church organizes this event, but they are only legally accountable for what occurs on their grounds. However, it is clear that the participants in this event are not limited to their property.
Loss of income
A significant portion of these merchants’ yearly income comes from the event, and they plan months in advance for the items they will serve and the personnel they will require.
For the past ten years, the Bonilla family has relied on this event for at least 25% of their yearly revenue, according to Cilia Bonilla. They plan for the two-day celebration at least three months in advance since they sell fruit, nachos, and other goodies. According to her, a significant amount of the products had already been paid for when they received notification of the change in October.
The Bonillas are always among the first to get a site at the esplanade, and they always do so through organizer Daniel Hinojosa, who was hired by East End District over ten years ago to assist in running the market on the Navigation esplanade.
It will be challenging to predict or control the number of merchants that will participate this year due to the prohibition on vendors on the esplanade.
Mario Castillo, a member of the city council representing District H, stated that he had heard from multiple sources regarding the security and congestion problems. Locals and business owners were among those anxious that the crowd at the event would be too big to control.
After speaking with everyone involved, he believes that there is a problem with the event’s overall lack of supervision.
This clearly needs more organization, in my opinion,” Castillo stated. An organization must take the initiative and declare that it will take responsibility for the situation and work with the city, management district, and church.
“This year is a trial of sorts,” Castillo continued, adding that the esplanade modifications are just one aspect of what may need to change to make this community-mainstay event sustainable. The Mayor’s Office of Special Events, which is participating for the first time this year, was contacted by his office, he added.
This first modification was unexpected for the affected vendors. When the Bonillas learned about it in October, they made a sudden change of heart and found a table at the Merida restaurant, which was a block from the church.
Hinojosa, who had previously reserved spaces for a number of these sellers, stated that he was forced to inform them to find another location. He finds it ironic that the area of the market that was rigorously controlled and allowed property was the one that was canceled.
According to Hinojosa, the East End District is not to blame. He believes that district officials did everything they could to ensure that everything was as safe and well-managed as possible. He is concerned that vendors will continue to set up wherever they can, though.
Hinojosa stated, “I have been informed that we will have some degree of the city’s involvement, but we won’t have my element of operations in the event.” They will do their best to keep it clear, but they haven’t done so before.
No es fiesta cualquiera
Every year on December 11 and 12, the Fiesta Guadalupana is held. According to Elizabeth Torres, office business manager at Our Lady of Guadalupe, officials anticipate roughly 3,000 visitors every evening, including parishioners who come on pilgrimages from other nearby churches.
The priests set aside spaces for blessings in between masses, and depending on annual demand, they may even add masses, according to Torres. The church hosts mariachi performances, Aztec dancing, and other events in addition to mass.
A 48-hour market with vendors selling food, flowers, and even toys for the youngest guests takes place outside the church along Navigation.
According to Torres, the area would be free for people who are there especially for the religious event if there were less sellers outside the church grounds.
“I believe that’s what caused the area to become slightly more crowded,” she remarked. You could tell apart who the pilgrims are, the ones who were actually coming and paying homage to La Virgen, and getting in line to visit the church as opposed to the ones who just said, Hey there s something going on outside.
According to Torres, this will also be the first year that the church has been asked to reserve a lane closure along Navigation in front of the church in order to improve pedestrian safety and foot traffic easier. Additionally, they have been informed that city health inspectors will be there to ensure that guests can safely engage in street selling.
Torres stated, “We’ll have at least that portion of the street secure for them because people do line up to get into the church.” We are hoping again this is trial and error, is the first time we are doing this that the lane closure will help with that, illegal vending and everything else.
Bonilla sees this latest change as a misunderstanding of the purpose of the event and their role in the celebration. While the name refers to a fiesta or party, she says this is a religious event where families attend to pay respects, not to cause trouble. And vendors are there to add to this event with traditional foods and other goods that are culturally appropriate.
No es fiesta cualquiera, Bonilla said. People come here for religion, they don t come here to fight, they don t come here to drink. They come to fulfill their promises to the virgin, they come for the pilgrimage.
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