VENDING IN THE City, particularly along the busy shopping area of Swan Street, is again causingconcern for the Police Force.
Commissioner of Police Darwin Dottin said yesterday there were again numerous complaints from store owners about sidewalk vending affecting their businesses.
“It seems that some tensions have developed between vendors who ply their wares on the street and the store owners,” Dottin said after he and a number of senior officers had toured the area.
“Store owners complained thatvendors set up in front of their businesses and impede the free movement of patrons into the stores, and also it is unfair competition with them,” he added.
Dottin said store owners argued that while their overheads were costly, vendors werenot faced with the same challenges.
He noted also thatin addition to creating a security headache, the vendors were causing serious health issues with the dumping of garbage in the alleyways.
Dottin called for the major stakeholders to meet and developed a plan that was suited to all parties.
