The first night of the Virgen de Guadalupe celebration in the East End’s Navegaci Boulevard corridor resulted in bloodshed and theft for numerous food vendors, who were informed that they would be arrested and that they would face numerous other consequences.
The celebration, which takes place on December 11 and 12, tends to draw a lot of vendors around the Navigation area. Due to concerns from potential aglomerations, this ono allows vendors to set up the concurred corredor.
Many set up shop in the area of M Rida’s, a restaurant on a manzana where the festival is held, while the prohibition was still in effect. The confusion arose when representatives from the Houston Department of Health arrived shortly after to request their temporary food permits, which are granted to vendors who set up shop there. Many do not have temporary food permits, but rather permits for other businesses or locations.
Teresa Mora said, “No nos dejan trabajar,” among other things.
His dog and elote population was terminated, and it was not taken into consideration that their other permits were not valid in this location.
“As ten an os consiguiendo permisos para trabajar aqu,” Mora said in Spanish. We want the city’s assistance for those who want to work while adhering to its rules.
Like many vendors, Mora and his family have trusted organizations hired by the East End District to help them manage details like these.
Additionally, the East End District decided not to accept the vendor market.
Raquel Ram rez, a vendor who owns a market for churros, said, “We allow all of you.” It’s been three hours after the request was made, and this is the first time that Houston has not received it.
The three hours she spent filling out the eight-page request form—which has been available in English on the city’s website all week—resulted in a denied request.
Ram rez and others left their places, but later that night, some vendors, with or without boleto, continued to sell to the growing numbers of visitors and feligres who came in droves to get their elotes, tacos, champurrado, and more.
According to Lucy Brown, the head of sanitation for the Houston Department of Health, residents and business owners had previously complained about unlicensed vendors who were denying them access to iron and the right to pass, which was against the law.
Their instructions were to ask anyone operating without a food vendor’s license to stop selling or serving food to the public and to leave the area.
If they didn’t retire and left the area, they were regrettably given a citation for violating municipal ordinance number 20, which requires obtaining a license from an agronomic merchant before engaging in the activity, explains Brown.
The vendors said that the sanity department employees had given them no more than 30 minutes to set up their booths and march, which was nearly impossible given the large number of people passing by.
Brown stated that no instructions regarding these periods had been given.
Confusi n acerca de los permisos
When the sanitary officials led the vendors, some of them displayed other permits, such as those from the city or the state, that allowed them to sell food in other locations. Brown clarifies that permits are not transferable and that in this instance, a temporary permit was required in order to operate in that specific location.
According to Rafael Acosta, the owner of the restaurant Merida s, who, aside from this an o, has before leased his appearance to vendors of food, snacks, clothing, and other items, they too accepted the permissions of Harris’ condition. This one appears to be delivered directly to the people here.
These spaces cost $700 per square, and some vendors occupied two or three plazas in order to meet their needs. He said that everyone was asked to provide their permissions and that they were trusted to do this on their own, adding that their mistake was not to be questioned if it had been done.
In the past, Acosta didn’t have to do anything more than emit the same recordatorio, said, but he felt that the changes made to this a… are unfairly directed at the vendors who want to live their lives honestly. Acosta stated that they have no plans to issue reembolsos because they are advising vendors to obtain their permissions in a timely manner.
A portion of the application for the Temporal Permiso de Alimentos requires an authorization document from the owner, event organizer, or agent, which Acosta has never had to sign. In the case of the vendors who previously agreed in the explanation, this occurs through an organizer.
“I never organize an event,” said Acosta. The only thing I do is alquilar spaces and points. The event is a part of the church.
A group of five or six staff members who worked in the medical field tried to stop themselves from making music. They took pictures of the vendors’ identities and locations, even as some of them turned away customers. Brown acknowledged that it had been expedited numerous times, but he stated that he did not have a precise recuento.
Porfirio Villarreal, who works as the public information officer and liaison between the Ayuntamiento and the Department of Health, stated that these several options may result in fines of up to $2,000 and that a judge would make the final decision over how much to charge each city’s vendors.
And this is because of the multas, Villarreal said. As a result, we encourage them to obtain a permit.
This afternoon, Juan Flores and his family, who had set up shop to sell seasonal drinks like champurrado and ponche, were busy. Without knowing what to do, the man would stare at his surroundings, as he would be able to steal the money if he found it and proceeded. It was one of those that presented permits to municipal employees for their other culinary business, but it did not obtain permission for events.
It affects a lot of families. “We reversed what we could in this situation, and it will go to the basura,” Flores said. We want to stop, even though we have other permissions.
Many vendors estimated that they would sell thousands of lares of perecederos-comprado foods for the event of two as. Moreover, Brown affirms that his employees are now present in the location and are sending out citations to anyone who would sell without authorization.
Se Ve Muy Triste
Afuera of la Iglesia de Nuestra Se ora de Guadalupe, el mi rcoles por la noche, los asistentes que awaited entry into the next service asked why the things didn’t look as they had been recorded.
You’re very depressed, right? Sonia Hernandez said, looking around her while speaking to another gentleman in the film.
When a group of devotees arrived with flowers to offer prayers to the Virgin, they explained that they always found long lines outside the church around 8 p.m. They found a location close to the entrance of the church.
According to Uriel Valencia, the streets are usually packed with people who come and go.
Valencia, a member of the Church, is an old vendor at this event, but he’s happy to do it, he said. He was informed of the changes made by his colleagues and stated that he was not satisfied with them.
Hernndez, Valencia, and other attendees were urged to state that the market and the food were also a significant portion of what each party had anticipated.
We’re here to experience our culture, eat tacos, elotes, and champurrado, and we’re not letting the people buy. “I don’t think so,” Valencia said. For us, it is a Mexican pedazo.
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