Ask the Mayor: Is it Legal to Set Up Shop in a ‘No Vendor’ Area?

Scenic Lookout, Maui. Photo by Wendy Osher.

Mayor Alan Arakawa answers some of the questions submitted to his office staff.

Submit your own questions about County of Maui programs, services, operations or policies to Mayor Alan Arakawa via email at [email protected], call 270-7855 or send them by mail to 200 S. High St., 9th Floor, Wailuku, HI 96793. Questions submitted will be considered for inclusion in the “Ask the Mayor” column.

Aloha,

Q: I stopped off at the scenic outlook along the Pali the other day to have a closer look at the “booths” that were set up.

Despite the two “No Vending” signs that are in place, one of the two tables was selling jewelry. When I asked the “proprietor” why she was selling there, when signs clearly said that what she was doing was not allowed, she said, in so many words, that she had been “grandfathered in”—that she’s been doing this there since before the law against it was enacted in 2006, and that she was exempt from that law.

I’m sorry if I’m missing something here, but if it says “No Vending,” it seems to me that that means by any/all vendors. Period. (I asked her if she had a GET license and she produced one from a box on her table.)

Could she be right? I find it very hard to believe that she might… Mahalo nui for your take on this.

A: Your email sparked a multi-agency inquiry, as many had seen the vendors selling items under the “No Vending” sign.

After receiving responses from the Hawai‘i State Department of Transportation and the State Department of Land and Natural Resources, it has been determined there is no grandfather clause that would exempt this vendor from the prohibition.

The statute regarding vending from highways and HDOT right of way is found in Hawai‘i Revised Statute §264-101 “Vending from highways prohibited.” Violators face petty misdemeanor charges and fines up to $1,000 and/or 30 days in prison.