[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Council of the Town of Glocester 9-5-2019, effective 9-5-2019. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following types of licenses shall be included:
HAWKER
A commercial vendor selling or offering for sale any goods, wares or merchandise whatsoever on any public street, highway or right-of-way from a stationary location (Example: commercial vendor selling from booth at an event).
MOBILE FOOD ESTABLISHMENT (MFE)
A food service operation that is operated from a movable motor-driven or propelled vehicle, portable structure, or watercraft that can change location. Mobile food establishment specifically includes, but is not limited to, food trucks, food carts, ice-cream trucks/carts, and lemonade trucks/carts. For the purposes of this chapter, and as allowed by Title 230, Rhode Island Department of Business Regulations, Sub. 35 - Mobile Food Establishment, Part 1.8, Permits, A.4.a., the following types of MFEs shall apply:
A. 
Type A: An MFE where food is prepared or reheated and sold from said truck. This type of MFE is prohibited from operating in neighborhood residential areas unless catering a private event. MFEs operating in all other areas subject to § 191-7C.
B. 
Type B: An MFE that sells prepackaged ice cream, ice cream products and frozen lemonade. This type of MFE is permitted to travel through neighborhood residential zones and stop only long enough to complete the sale of said product. MFEs operating in all other areas subject to § 191-7C.
PEDDLER
A commercial vendor selling or offering for sale any goods, wares or merchandise whatsoever on any public street, highway or right-of-way from a vehicle, cart or any other conveyance which is not stationary (Food items not included in this type of license) (Example: door-to-door salesman; commercial vendor selling novelties from a push cart at an event).
A. 
All hawkers, peddlers, or MFEs desiring to sell or offer for sale any food, nonalcoholic beverages, goods, wares, merchandise, fruits, vegetables or other articles or substances on any street in said Town shall make application to the Town Clerk for a license, and said Town Clerk may issue a license for the period from the date of such license until said license shall expire.
B. 
Holders of a special event license under Chapter 174, Entertainment - Special Events for Liquor Establishments, and Chapter 175, Entertainment - Special Events, shall be subject to the provisions of this chapter.
The application required shall include:
A. 
The name of the business and its owner or owners, and mailing address of the business.
B. 
MFE only: a current state mobile food establishment certificate.
C. 
For hawkers/peddlers only:
(1) 
The goods and articles proposed to be sold.
(2) 
The year, make, model, registration number, and proof of insurance for any vehicle to be used.
(3) 
The days and hours during which the applicant wishes to operate.
(4) 
Two so-called "passport-size photographs" of the individual authorized to act under such license (One photo will be used on ID badge and one photo will remain with application).
(5) 
A valid permit to make sales at retail from the State Division of Taxation must be submitted with the application.
A. 
No such license shall be issued until such time as the Town Clerk receives all approvals, as deemed necessary.
B. 
For hawkers and peddlers: The Town Clerk shall, in addition to the license specified above, issue an identification badge containing one of the photographs of the authorized individual along with the effective dates of the license and such other information as the Town Clerk shall deem appropriate. Every licensee shall wear, while engaged in any activity regulated by this chapter, the identification badge issued by the Town Clerk. Such identification badge shall be worn so that it is clearly visible. Violation of this subsection shall be cause for the revocation of the license issued under this chapter.
C. 
No license issued pursuant to this chapter shall be transferable to any person other than the individual to whom it was issued and named therein to act thereunder; provided, however, a licensee may employ a driver, and such driver may operate on the license as long as he/she is registered with the Town Clerk as a driver pertaining to said license.
D. 
A separate license shall be required for each vehicle, cart or pushcart. Every licensee shall carry with him/her such license while engaged in sales and produce the same when required by an official of the Town or any other person requesting to see said license. Failure to do so may be cause for the revocation of such license.
All applicants licensed under this chapter shall pay a fee as provided in Chapter 368, Fees, which shall be retained by the Town whether such license is granted or denied.
A. 
MFE, Type A & B: shall be allowed to stop, with property owner permission and in consideration of all sections of this chapter, for periods not to exceed four hours in all areas except in residential neighborhoods.
B. 
There shall be no solicitation of motor vehicles while a motor vehicle is stopped in traffic or stopped at a traffic light or intersection. All peddlers, hawkers, or MFEs shall be prohibited from blocking any sidewalk, impeding the flow of traffic, or blocking traffic so as to create a traffic hazard.
C. 
Prohibited locations. The Chief of Police may, from time to time, submit to the Town Council locations, public streets, highways or rights-of-way throughout the Town which in his/her opinion, because of excess traffic and congestion, are rendered unsafe for the public welfare to allow the selling or offering for sale of merchandise, services or food by peddlers, hawkers, or MFEs.
All peddlers, hawkers, or MFEs shall be prohibited from selling or displaying goods at the following locations:
(1) 
At the intersection of Route 44 and 102;
(2) 
At the intersection of Route 44 and 100;
(3) 
At the intersection of Route 100 and 102;
(4) 
At the intersection of Route 44 and Douglas Hook Road;
(5) 
At the intersection of Route 44 and Farnum Road;
(6) 
At the intersection of Route 44 and Saw Mill Road;
(7) 
At the intersection of Route 44 and Pine Orchard Road;
D. 
The Town Council shall have the right to deny, suspend, or revoke any license, issued per this chapter, if the operation of the licensee within the Town violates the Town's land use regulations, zoning, or other ordinances specific to the operation of an MFE.
E. 
No licensee shall offer for sale at any Town-owned park or recreational area any food, goods or services without obtaining prior written approval from the Recreation Director nor any other publicly owned property without Town Council approval. Permission granted previously for use on above public properties may be rescinded or rescheduled by the Town.
F. 
No peddler, hawker, or MFE shall stop or set up to service customers within 100 feet of any establishment offering for sale similar goods or services.
G. 
No peddler, hawker, or MFE vendor shall wear clothing that to the reasonable person shall be considered suggestive and/or offensive to the community.
H. 
Sales prohibited during certain hours. No peddling, hawking, or MFE activity regulated by this chapter shall be permitted anywhere in the Town, except between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. in residential districts and between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. in business districts and industrial districts; provided, however, that food, beverages or other products for immediate human consumption may be sold in industrial districts between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. Exceptions to these hours may be granted only by the Recreation Director and/or Town Council.
I. 
Excessive nuisance. No peddler, hawker, or MFE persons shall attempt to sell his/her wares by means of any loudspeaker, voice-amplification system or electronic noise-making device intended to attract public attention, nor shall he/she create a nuisance situation.
J. 
No MFE vendor, under this chapter, shall provide or allow setup of any dining area, including but not limited to tables, chairs, booths, benches, and standup counters, unless a proposal for such seating arrangement is submitted with the license application and approved.
K. 
MFE vendors shall provide their consumers with single-service articles, such as plastic forks and paper plates, and a waste container for their disposal. All said vendors shall offer a waste container for public use that the operator shall empty at his own expense. MFE vendors are responsible for the cleanup of all areas surrounding their location, and public areas not left as is may be cause for license revocation.
L. 
Unattended vehicles prohibited. No MFE shall be parked on a street overnight or left unattended and unsecured on a street at any time. Any MFE which is found to be unattended on a street shall be considered a public safety hazard and may be ticketed and impounded.
A. 
All peddler and hawker licenses shall expire on the date stated on the license issued by the Town Clerk's office or, in the case of an MFE license, upon expiration of the licensee's state MFE registration, but any license may be revoked or suspended at any time by the Town Council for violation of any of the provisions of this chapter or for any other good cause.
B. 
A peddler or hawker, while engaged in an activity regulated by this chapter, who shall neglect or refuse to wear the identification badge, as specified in this chapter, § 191-4B, may have the license revoked.
C. 
Any person selling any goods, services or merchandise in the Town of Glocester in violation of this chapter shall, upon conviction, be fined or imprisoned as provided in Chapter 1, General Provisions, Article II, Penalties; provided, however, that no person shall be fined more than $200 or imprisoned more than 10 days for such violation.
A. 
Enumerated. For the purpose of this chapter, the Town shall have three categories of licenses:
(1) 
Category 1: those persons or businesses selling or offering to sell perishable foodstuffs and soft beverages (MFEs);
(2) 
Category 2: those persons selling or offering for sale articles or goods made by their own hands, or of general manufactured merchandise (peddlers and hawkers);
(3) 
Category 3: those persons or businesses selling or offering for sale services or products through door-to-door sales (peddlers).
B. 
Limitations. As of the effective date of the adoption of this section, the maximum number of licenses shall be as follows: in Category 1, a maximum of five annual licenses; in Category 2, a maximum of three annual licenses; and in Category 3, a maximum of three annual licenses; provided, however, that the reduction in the number of authorized licenses shall not be deemed to affect the right of any current license holder to continue to renew the license annually. All licensees who have obtained a license prior to the effective date of this section shall be entitled to annually renew the license, notwithstanding the limitations on the number of licenses authorized to be issued, so long as the licensee complies with all of the provisions of this chapter and any applicable regulations. Any licensee who fails to renew his/her license prior to the expiration date shall not be entitled to renew the license unless and until there is a license available in the category applied for. No new licenses in any of the categories shall be issued until the total number of licenses issued for a specific category is less than the maximum number set forth above.
C. 
Vacancies: The Town Clerk shall maintain a list of persons interested in obtaining an annual hawker, peddler, or MFE license and, upon the occurrence of a vacancy in said category, shall notify the person whose name appears first on the waiting list of such category of the availability of a license. If the person so notified fails to make application within 10 days after notification, the Town Clerk shall remove that person's name from the list and notify the person whose name appears next on said list until an application is received. In the event that the Town Clerk does not approve the application, any applicant may appeal to the Town Council within 30 days of the date of any denial by the Town Clerk of any such application. In order to be considered by the Town Council, any such appeal must be properly delivered in writing by the applicant no later than the close of business on the Monday immediately preceding the next Town Council meeting.
A. 
In addition to the other licenses referred to in this chapter, the Town Clerk shall have the authority to issue a hawker's license(s) to the premises of a nonprofit farm cooperative agency(ies) jointly with an applicant for the sale of vegetables, fruits and flowers.
B. 
Requirements and limitations.
(1) 
The applicant must be a Town resident.
(2) 
All items to be sold must be grown on the applicant's premises.
(3) 
There shall be a maximum of two licenses granted per nonprofit farm cooperative agency, per granted date(s).
(4) 
A fee shall be charged upon application for said license, in accordance with Chapter 368, Fee Schedule.
For any event where an individual (organizer) has arranged for the operation of one or more mobile food establishments at a gathering to be located on public property, the organizer shall obtain an event permit prior to the event.
A. 
A fee for this event shall be charged in accordance with Chapter 368, Fee Schedule.
B. 
Applications for events must be received 10 days prior to the purposed event. (In the event the organizer has reason to believe the event may fall under the provisions of a mass gathering event, it will be the sole responsibility of the organizer to submit this application within a time period to allow for the provisions outlined in § 191-12 to be met.)
C. 
The Town Clerk shall determine if the event permitted is subject to the organizer obtaining a mass gathering permit (as outlined in § 191-12) in addition to an event permit.
D. 
All events shall be in accordance with all stipulations of this chapter and any other land use or zoning laws of the Town.
E. 
Event promoter will be responsible to ensure that all MFEs submit state MFE certificates, before an event permit will be issued.
For any event where an individual (organizer) has an anticipated assembly of 500 or more people that is expected to continue for two or more hours per day; or an event that requires a more extensive review to protect public health and safety because the event's nature or conditions have the potential of generating environmental or health risks, the organizer shall obtain a temporary mass gathering permit prior to the event, in addition to an event permit, provided:
A. 
This includes, but is not limited to, "special events" as defined in the Food Code Regulations promulgated by the Rhode Island Department of Health, and festivals and concerts.
B. 
Shall not include an assembly of people at a location with permanent facilities designed for that specific assembly unless said event is open to the public.
C. 
A fee for this event shall be charged in accordance with Chapter 368, Fee Schedule.
D. 
Applications for events must be received 30 days prior to the proposed event.
E. 
All events shall be in accordance with all stipulations of this chapter and any other land use or zoning laws of the Town.
F. 
The Town Clerk shall determine if this permit is necessary in addition to an event permit (as outlined in § 191-11).
G. 
The event promoter will be responsible to ensure that all MFEs submit a state MFE certificate, before a temporary mass gathering permit will be issued.
Adopted by Glocester Town Council on September 5, 2019; effective January 1, 2020.