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

Chapter 8.06 governs sidewalk vending citywide. Section 8.06.020(A) makes it unlawful to engage in sidewalk vendor activities, defined broadly to include placing or maintaining a vending cart, without first applying for and receiving a sidewalk vendor permit. The written application under subsection (C) must include an address for service of process, a schedule of proposed hours and locations, a description of the vending equipment and where it will be stored, evidence of any required county health department permit, proof of commercial general liability insurance, government-issued photo identification with a taxpayer ID number, and a California seller's permit designating the City of Westminster as a location.

Section 8.06.030 lists the findings the city must make before issuing the permit, including that the vending will not unduly interfere with traffic, pedestrians, or city operations, will not create a fire hazard, and that the applicant has no unpaid fines from a prior violation, no license revoked by any agency within five years, and no disqualifying felony or morals conviction within five years. Permits are renewed annually alongside the business license, with a separate nonrefundable renewal fee each year, and a permit is nontransferable: any change in ownership or in who is operating the cart requires a brand-new permit under § 8.06.020(B). Small compact mobile food operations under twenty-five square feet that sell only prepackaged low-risk items such as bagged snacks or bottled water are exempt from the county health permit requirement but must still carry a food handler's card.