Date: Fri 11-Apr-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: STEVEB

Quick Words:

selectmen-vendors-fees

Full Text:

Selectmen Raise Fees For Door-To-Door Vendors

B Y S TEVE B IGHAM

The vendors who push their carts along Main Street at the Labor Day Parade

will continue to be charged $25 to sell their wares to the crowd.

The Board of Selectmen updated its vendors and hawkers fees Monday night. It

was the first time they had been changed in 43 years, and while the board kept

the parade fees the same, the selectmen raised license fees for door-to-door

salesmen, ice cream vendors and park concession stands as much as 800 percent.

"We're not going to offset tax dollars with these fees, but we do want to have

consistency," First Selectman Bob Cascella said.

Door-to-door sales fees have never been set in town before because, according

to Mr Cascella, they were simply not allowed. "In the past I just said no," he

said.

However, Town Attorney Dave Grogins said state statutes prohibit towns from

refusing to license vendors.

Door-to-door and park concessions were set at $250, while ice cream sales

jumped to $200. All three were previously $25.

Mr Grogins said the money collected from the fees can be used to investigate

the seller, if needed.

The Legislative Council's Ordinance Committee recently revised the vendors and

hawkers ordinance. Among the committee's action was to change the wording so

that vendors could now simply stop by the selectman's office in town hall for

a license, rather than receive approval from the Board of Selectmen.