Ralph’s Grocery Store in the Pacific Palisades is suing seven food vendors who set up stores on the streets and sidewalks outside the store.
The grocery market was cited for trespassing, public nuisance and negligence, alleging the truck and its customers were parked illegally, “obstructing the view of traffic” for Ralphs customers and employees, “obstructing the sidewalk” and drawing crowds. They are suing street vendors alleging that “Physically attacking each other” and “throwing trash on Ralph’s property”.
Ralphs is seeking a preliminary injunction that would prohibit food vendors from standing within 200 feet of a Palisades Ralphs or 500 feet of a nearby school.
In the meantime, the store has put up large signs warning customers and vendors of the risk of being towed if they park in the lot.
Most afternoons, food trucks and taco stands will be set up along the public road and sidewalk in front of Ralph’s, and two additional trucks will be set up along Alma Real Drive behind the grocery store.
“For the general public, there are advantages, such as being able to eat a wide variety of food at low prices. But there are also some disadvantages, such as the sidewalks being completely blocked off, as you can see now.” said Steve Rossi, who lives in the area. “I mean, the parking lot here is already pretty busy. So if people are coming to park here, I can understand that Ralph isn’t happy about that.”
Longtime customers of the street vendor told NBCLA that most people are picking up their orders to-go.
“In my experience, people know that when they meet at Ralphs, they park at Ralphs. Yes, but usually they just kind of take it home anyway,” Aliya Govindraj said.
Gracias Señor, a kitchen truck vendor who serves Mexican food, has been parking his truck in front of Ralph’s home for nine years.
“No one has caused any problems. We try to be as respectful to the city as possible,” said Gracias Senor owner Rodolfo Barrientos. “That’s why I believe the community has embraced us so well.”
Barrientos has operated in the Palisades for about 10 years, primarily at the Sunset store. He says there has been more pushback from Ralphs recently. Barrientos installed his own signage to discourage people from parking in the Ralphs parking lot and set up trash cans for customers. At one point, management tried to appease store rules by moving to the back of the store.
“That’s why I decided to move to this side so they can have that side and we can continue to live in peace and provide nourishment to our community. But that’s not all. It wasn’t enough for them,” Barrientos said.
Employees at Glenda’s Catering, a food truck also being sued, said they are also asking customers not to park in the Ralphs parking lot.
“We can’t manage everyone. There are too many people,” the worker said. “If there wasn’t a need, I would have walked away and avoided a lot of problems, but there is a need, so we’ll have to wait and see.
A hearing on the injunction request is scheduled for January 24th. While some businesses have hired lawyers, staff at Glenda’s Catering said they can’t afford one, but plan to go to court and defend themselves before a judge.
NBCLA reached out to several representatives of Ralphs stores and all of the attorneys named in the lawsuit, but did not receive a response.
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