Posted on 08/21/2008 5:57:56 PM PDT by ellery
CLAYTON, CA (KGO) -- Two young East Bay girls are trying to find out if you really can fight city hall. The youngsters are battling to get their produce stand back after the city of Clayton shut them down.
The mayor himself is getting involved in this issue; he says the produce stand, operated by two young sisters, had to be shut down because of public safety and a zoning ordinance. But members of the Lewis family say - we have just begun to fight.
On a Clayton street corner is where 11-year-old Katie and 3-year- old Sabrina Lewis had been selling their families surplus fruits and veggies - stuff like: Story continues belowAdvertisement "Zucchini, melons, tomatoes, radishes," said Sabrina Lewis.
They did it for maybe four hours on Saturday mornings to make a little money. They haven't sold a thing since the police showed up recently in response to one complaint to the mayor's office.
-snip-
As for the traffic issue, neighbor Terri Highsmith says there isn't one.
"On the weekends is when I mostly notice them selling. I come and go a lot and I've never seen any traffic problems," said Highsmith.
Clayton Mayor Gregg Manning disagrees. And wonders what Katie and Sabrina might do with that produce stand if the zoning laws weren't enforced.
"They may start out with a little card-table and selling a couple of things, but then who is to say what else they have. Is all the produce made there, do they make it themselves? Are they going to have eggs and chickens for sale next," said Manning.
-snip-
(Excerpt) Read more at abclocal.go.com ...
AMEN.
Not sure if this is Nanny State or Gardening or Mom’s..........or all.......or none.<<<
I dare not put in print what I think.
Fools are not born, they are brainwashed.........I wonder if he knows where his food comes from?
Ping.
This is one reason why I’ve always wanted a farm, and worked for 20 years to buy one:
The “farm kids” I went to high school with all had their own acreage to tend; whatever they grew and sold, they got to keep a good chunk of the profits.
My friend Linda planted tobacco one year...and came back to school in the fall with a brand new 1971 Camaro! (She planted...wait for it...evil, evil...TOBACCO!) Oh, and she was in the running for Miss Wisconsin that year, too, Nordic Goddess that she was, on top of being financially & fiscally savvy as a teen and obviously not afraid of hard work.
It’s the farmin’ life for me. ;)
...And why do images of Chief Wiggum and Fat Tony from ‘The Simpsons’ keep popping into my head? ;)
I too hope they win their fight. I guess I have just spent so many years fighting assinine ordinances that it has just become second nature to me to check before hand. Cynic that I am, I going in presuming there will be hoops to jump, and so am pleasantly surpised when there are not.
Doesn’t this mayor and the police have more pressing problems to deal with than to hassle a couple little girls and their veggie stand?
I mean crime, corruption, graft, assaults, etc.
So one call to the mayor’s office gets them shut down. I bet that call came from a local supermarket.
Blueberry jam.
Mmmmmmmmmmm.........
I wouldn't doubt it. One of our local stores tried that with the local farmer's market. Some have no low to which they will not stoop.
Well, they might build a Wal-Mart, Gregg. Or perhaps start a used car business. Or, if they're really skanky, they might offer themselves up for prostitution.
Somehow, Gregg, I don't think that two little girls represent a real threat to zoning. Zero-tolerance = zero sense.
LOL! I have blueberries thawing on the counter right now :)
“I know where the zucchini should go, much to the mayor’s discomfort.” What, no zucchini bread!
AMEN!
The problem is, if there is a city ordinance that outlaws setting up a sales kiosk on the sidewalk, then the city officials have to enforce it regardless of whether or not the people violating the law are cute.
There are very good reasons for having these types of laws- it prevents people from setting up hot dog stands, taco trucks, t-shirts stalls etc. all over town.
I think people on this thread are forgetting that this law was passed by the elected government of this town. They shouldn't be attacking the mayor for enforcing the law.
Wow! On my way to my produce co-op I saw four little children on the sidewalk with a cooler and a sign. I at first thought they were selling lemonade and intended to get some. Then, found out they were selling eggs. Their mom came out when I was on my way back to my truck and I talked to her. They had wanted to buy some chicks. They raised them, took care of them, and cleaned them. Selling the eggs was also their idea. She said it was their business and I could come back anytime. Of course, I have to wait until it gets cooler, so the hens lay more. I’d be pissed if some government official got after my egg supplier.
Really? How many speeding tickets have you gotten for 1mph over the limit?
Elected officials and government employees always have discretion in enforcing their laws. The ones with at least the common sense of a turnip will use that discretion wisely. Those who rank lower than "turnip" on the intelligence scale, like this mayor, will hide behind "zero tolerance" as an excuse for not engaging their brains.
I think people on this thread are forgetting that this law was passed by the elected government of this town. They shouldn't be attacking the mayor for enforcing the law.
Something wrong with voicing one's opinion of how an elected official is doing the job he was hired by the electorate to do?
As I said before, the ultimate solution is to fire the mayor and city council for passing a poorly-written ordinance and then enforcing it instead of thinking. The town could probably elect five random names out of the phone book and do better on average.
I generally oppose zoning laws for private property.
But on public property, I agree with regulation and enforcement, as in this case. Its the "people's property", and they, the majority, can use it or not as they see fit. Up to a point, though. This isn't that point for me.
hey thanks! Bamahead, you are doing a really great job with the ping list, actually I think you have been doing better than I did with it! If you’re willing, I think it would be great if you would consider a more permenant ‘taking over’ of the libertarian ping list. If not, I could still take it back by the end of this month.
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