Oxnard, CA Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Sidewalk & Mobile Vending (2026)

Section 8-47(C) of the Oxnard Code, added by Ordinance No. 2952, governs sidewalk vendors, defined in subsection (A) as anyone who sells goods or merchandise on a public sidewalk from a structure, stand, display, showcase, rack, or human-powered device. In residential areas, only a vendor holding a valid permit issued under Chapter 11, Article 1, Division 3 of the code may vend on the city's public right-of-way at all. Every permitted vendor selling food must also comply with the California Retail Food Code (Cal. Health and Safety Code Sec. 113700 et seq.).

The section caps the physical footprint of a vending setup at 18 square feet, or a linear distance of more than six feet on any one side, and bars vendors from blocking the required sidewalk or path-of-travel width under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act. Location restrictions layered on top of the size limit keep vendors at least 500 feet from a permitted special event area, off street medians entirely, at least 100 feet from any intersection, at least 500 feet from a freeway on- or off-ramp, and at least 900 feet from a school or daycare property line between 7:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. on school days. In nonresidential zones, a sidewalk vendor's hours cannot exceed the hours already allowed for other businesses on that same street. In residential areas, roaming vendors are confined to 9:00 a.m. or sunrise (whichever is later) through 7:00 p.m. or sunset (whichever is earlier), and stationary sidewalk vending is prohibited outright in areas that are exclusively residential. Stationary vendors are also barred from city parks that have an exclusive food or merchandise concession agreement.