Vendor is steamed about getting boot
THIRD STREET PROMENADE — No one likes a hot dog, or at least the managers of vending operations here seem to have had their fill.
Provenzano Resources Inc., which manages cart vendors on Third Street, and other outdoor shopping destinations like The Grove in Los Angeles and Irvine Spectrum Center, say they’ve had enough of one hotheaded hot dog-selling tenant, and want him gone by the end of the week.
Meanwhile, Promenade Dog, which has been selling its steamy wieners at center court of the promenade for almost a year, is promising a fight to stay put, collecting signatures from loyal customers on Wednesday.
Provenzano is currently in the process of agreeing to terms with LA County Department of Health Services to implement a food cart program on the promenade. The manager gave Promenade Dog, which is already licensed by the county, the green light to operate on the promenade temporarily after learning that a future tenant had purchased their food products too early and were in danger of losing money.
The permission to Promenade Dog to operate on the promenade was intended to serve two purposes — help the future tenant sell their products through Promenade Dog’s cart and help curb the presence of homelessness and loitering teenagers from center court, said Debbie Lahti, representative of Provenzano Resources.
Over the past few months, the other tenant eventually sold all of her products and left the cart operation, leaving Nico Viakou, the owner of Promenade Dog, to his own devices. It was then that Viakou, according to Lahti, began violating the contract by attaching an umbrella to his cart and selling items that were not listed in the temporary agreement.
Management company officials said they originally wanted Viakou to come on board the food cart program. Unfortunately, due to the increasing number of violations, that invitation will no longer be extended, Lahti said.
With Christmas decorations appearing on center court this week, Provenzano Resources officials told Viakou he had to move his cart to the 1400 block of Third Street, and has to shut his operation down by Friday.
“If he really had a strong feeling he wanted to stay,he should’ve talked to us about it,”Lahti said.
Viakou has collected close to 150 signatures in three days from customers who say they want to see Promenade Dog stay remain on Third Street. It is unclear whether those signatures will have any weight on the management company’s decision.
“It’s going to kill my business and kill myself,”Viakou said on Wednesday.“It’s going to kill myself because I will be out of work.”
Viakou accuses the management company of failing to state a valid reason why it wants the hot dog vendor to leave.
The hot dog stand has built a strong customer base over the past year, according to Viakou, attracting loyal patrons from Morgan Stanley on the promenade, and a nearby advertising firm. The vendor is currently in the process of applying for a permit to open a hot dog stand in front of the post office on Fifth Street.
Customers are drawn to the hot dog stand because of the personable customer service, said John Zahrai,who mans the cart every day.
“For all of these youngsters who work in these stores, the cart is much faster for them,” Zahrai said, motioning to the nearby shops along the promenade. “I have some customers who come every day.”
Andrea Gastelum visits the cart from her office on Second Street several times a week to indulge in a sauerkraut-topped hot dog. On Wednesday, she stopped by the cart to sign the petition and briefly chat with Zahrai.
“I want him to stay,” Gastelum said. “There’s a lot of traffic here and it’s nice to have a variety of food.”
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on November 16, 2006. Read the original PDF.