Councilwoman Calls For Greater Examination Of Town's Vendor Laws

MOORESTOWN, NJ — During a recent event put on by the Strawbridge Lake Beautification Committee, Lisa Petriello said she noticed an inconsistency with the way Moorestown treats vendors from out of town and vendors from within the township. Petriello is a Moorestown Councilwoman and member of the committee.

“Businesses that are in the township don’t need background checks, but those outside the township do,” Petriello said during Monday night’s council meeting at town hall. She also said non-profits don’t need a background check, but certain individuals do.

“Why are there these inconsistencies?” Petriello asked. “We need to bring the ordinance up to speed with the modern world.”

She suggested looking at what other municipalities do and consider following suit.

“Did you get the impression that our laws are different than laws in other municipalities?” Councilwoman Victoria Napolitano asked.

“Yes, some vendors did tell me it was different,” Petriello said.

The suggestion came up as Moorestown Council was considering amendments to the ordinance concerning peddling, solicitation and transient vendors. The proposed ordinance itself sought to clarify that vendors must first apply to become eligible to conduct business in the township at least 20 days ahead of when they would like to do so.

Currently, there are potential transient vendors — including businesses such as food trucks and ice cream trucks — that don’t apply for a permit until a week ahead of time because they are unaware of the eligibility period. The amendment, proposed by Moorestown Police Chief Lee Lieber and Moorestown Clerk Patricia Hunt, clarifies there is an eligibility period, which includes a background check.

It also changes how long a permit is good for. They are currently only good for two weeks. The proposal calls for 30-day permits, with a total of 12 permits possible over a one-year span before vendors must once again apply for eligibility. For more details on the proposal, click here.

Petriello noted that it was possible under the current ordinance for someone who is a convicted felon to be operating a business in the township because they didn’t have to undergo a background check first.

“I’m for safety and I’m for bringing this up to speed,” Petriello said.

Beyond Petriello’s concern for consistency, council discussed limiting permits to transient vendors. Hunt said the one-year permits allow vendors who want to participate in events throughout the year to do so under one permit.

“If they want to go to 12 events throughout the year, they can get one permit,” Hunt said.

“Maybe that should be specified,” Deputy Mayor Manny Delgado suggested.

He said he didn’t want to create a situation in which food trucks were just popping up anywhere throughout the township. Delgado said he didn’t want to see food trucks show up and set up shop outside a business every day. Township Manager Tom Merchel said a transient vendor permit stipulates the vendor must be on the move, from street to street.

Mayor Stacey Jordan said the ordinance should be opened up for a full review, but she didn’t want that to slow down the process council was there to vote on Monday night. Council unanimously approved the proposal with a vote of 5-0. The public hearing and final vote is set for June 25. A full examination of the ordinance may come after that.

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