A Hanford resident and nationally recognized food and beverage entrepreneur is calling attention to what she describes as major regulatory conflicts that make it nearly impossible for mobile food vendors to legally operate within the city.

Kayla Castaneda, who stated she has been recognized by outlets including Forbes and Inc., addressed the Hanford City Council to outline what she believes are overlapping and contradictory rules between the City of Hanford and the Kings County Environmental Health Department.

According to Castaneda, Hanford’s current municipal code requires mobile food vendors to move locations every 10 minutes, maintain a distance of at least 250 feet from brick-and-mortar businesses, and prohibits vending on all city-owned property. The only exception, she said, is Civic Park, which is allowed under a special event or special use permit.

However, Castaneda explained that even after obtaining a special use permit for Civic Park, she was unable to operate because Kings County Environmental Health does not recognize the park as a valid vending site due to a lack of water access.

“This means the singular pathway the city offers to mobile vendors to publicly sell leads directly into a county requirement the site cannot meet,” she told the council.

Castaneda described the situation as a direct conflict between city approval and county enforcement, stating that vendors who follow city rules may still find themselves out of compliance with county health regulations.

She also highlighted additional inconsistencies. Hanford’s ordinance requires vendors to stay at least 250 feet away from businesses, while county regulations require vendors to be within 200 feet of a building that provides restroom access. Castaneda noted that both requirements cannot be met simultaneously.

“If you comply with the city, you’re out of compliance with the county and vice versa,” she said.

ADVERTISEMENT

Another issue raised involved the requirement for vendors to operate in connection with a licensed commissary kitchen in order to obtain a county health permit. Castaneda stated that no publicly accessible commissary kitchen currently exists in Hanford or anywhere in Kings County, creating another barrier to compliance.

She further noted that Hanford’s ordinance has not been updated since before 2018, the year California enacted Senate Bill 946, which limits how cities can regulate sidewalk vendors. Castaneda suggested the city’s current code may not align with state law.

As part of her request, Castaneda submitted a written analysis to the council that includes proposed amendments. One suggestion involves designating the Civic Auditorium as a location with water access to help meet county health requirements.

She also indicated that she has communicated with county officials to seek clarification on the regulations and submitted those communications for the public record.

Castaneda asked the City Council to direct staff to review the municipal code for conflicts with county and state regulations and to return with proposed updates.

Her broader request called for increased coordination between the City of Hanford and Kings County to reduce barriers for small business owners.

“I’m asking that the city work hand in hand with the county to alleviate the burden that small business owners are under and make the permits that we’re paying for actually worth something,” she said.