‘Insanity’: S.F. merchants say stolen goods chaos continues despite new state law – San Francisco Chronicle

The scene that played out at the Mission District’s BART plaza on 24th Street has become all too familiar in San Francisco.

A crowd of about three dozen people lined the sidewalk Thursday afternoon. In front of them were suitcases full of shampoo and makeup, flattened cardboard displaying jeans and sweatshirts, and one man hawking a half-dozen packages of Reese’s for $1 apiece. 

“Everyone’s gotta hustle,” said Nicholas Cosmos, who was selling clothing and toiletries that he said he got from family or bought at the flea market to resell at a markup.

Soon, a pair of public works employees and two police officers approached, and the crowd scattered.

After a proliferation of fencing — the buying and selling of stolen goods — in recent years, officials signaled late last year that they finally had what they needed to ratchet up enforcement and curb the problem. 

But nearly five months after vows to crack down, city officials told the Chronicle they have yet to implement tough new enforcement measures. Not a single fine or citation has been issued. 

A new law, written by state Sen. Scott Wiener and signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in October, gave San Francisco police the authority to cite people who were caught illegally selling merchandise without a permit or proof of purchase. The legislation was meant to curb the impact of a 2018 state law that decriminalized sidewalk vending and that police say tied their hands.

The Board of Supervisors in December approved a list of more than 100 commonly stolen items that would be subject to enforcement — the last step before the law could take effect.

Mayor Daniel Lurie, who sponsored the legislation, called it a “critical piece of legislation” that would finally allow the city to punish illegal vending operations while “protecting hardworking, permitted vendors and supporting small businesses.”

But officials with the public works department and police said this week they were still working with the city attorney’s office to finalize how to implement the law and ensure the plan was legally sound. 

“It’s not been used yet,” public works spokesperson Rachel Gordon said about the law, “but it is intended to be used as soon as those things are worked out.” 

Officials had to create systems to track repeat offenders across city agencies and to preserve seized stolen goods as evidence for possible criminal proceedings. They were also evaluating a recent lawsuit filed against San Diego related to its sidewalk vending ordinance to ensure it wouldn’t impact San Francisco’s plan, Gordon said. 

SFPD spokesperson Evan Sernoffsky said enforcing vending laws is a “top priority” and that officers will “always use any tools we are given to crack down on illegal vending and other crimes in the Mission District and in all other San Francisco neighborhoods.”

The mayor’s office declined to comment, referring questions to police.

Residents and merchants in areas hard hit by fencing — the Mission, Mid-Market and Chinatown — say the situation has only worsened as they wait for the city to act. Illegal vending markets continue to block sidewalks, fuel retail theft and create an environment where chaos and violence can thrive, they say. 

“Things have declined for sure in terms of cleanliness and safety,” said Ryen Motzek, president of the Mission Merchants Association, who backed the legislation. “I hate to use this cliché, but insanity is doing the same thing over and over. They’re doing the same thing over and over, while conditions are worsening.”

The city has tried various measures to eliminate the problem, including establishing a permit system to create a legal path for legitimate vendors and repeatedly extending temporary vending bans on Mission Street. But the illegal vending markets persist. 

Rodrigo Lopez is one of about 130 permitted street vendors across the city. Lopez sells merchandise, including children’s toys and backpacks, at a sidewalk stand just steps away from BART’s 24th Street Mission Station plaza. 

Frustrated by the chaos of the unpermitted vendors nearby, Lopez traveled to Sacramento five times to give testimony in support of the new law. But months later, he said he’s worried it won’t bring the hoped-for change. 

“We got lost through the process,” Lopez said. The state law “sounds good on paper, but in reality not much will happen.”

Instead, he said, he wants to see more police officers patrolling the neighborhood. The sight of an officer in uniform, he said, keeps the illegal vendors from setting up shop.

Starting next month, eight officers from other stations are getting reassigned to the Mission to partially help address the growing illicit drug and illegal vending markets, according to Sean Perdomo, the SFPD Mission Station captain. 

“We’ll be ramping up our presence out here, so hopefully that’ll make a difference,” Perdomo said. 

In recent years, the city’s public works department has led enforcement, which entails written warnings and confiscating merchandise from vendors who cannot provide a receipt. Public works inspectors visit illegal vending hotspots, with police officers acting as security. When they arrive, most sellers quickly pack up and flee or refuse to give them identification. Some turn violent, throwing items at inspectors and verbally or physically assaulting them. Then, when the cops and inspectors leave to visit another area, sellers gradually return to business as usual. 

From August 2025 to April of this year, just 16 warnings were issued, or about two per month. The warnings rarely lead to more serious punishment. 

Under the new law, police will now have some enforcement power — but only with strict guardrails and limitations. 

Public works inspectors must still issue a written warning to violators before police can get involved. If vendors continue selling merchandise for which they don’t have receipts, a cop can issue fines for second or third violations within an 18-month period. Those who continue breaking the law after that could face a misdemeanor charge and up to six months in jail.

That’s a lot of boxes to check before the police can act. So residents and merchants worry the new rules will not meaningfully curb the problem.

“A warning does nothing,” said Edward Siu, president of the Chinatown Merchants United Association. “If they don’t get a citation, they don’t care.”

Siu said the lack of enforcement has created unsafe conditions for Chinatown customers and small business owners. The illegal vendors he sees include people who appear to be homeless and elderly people reselling items from food pantries, including raw meat and fish.  

“We’ve been asking for help for more than five years. Our mayor has been in his position for more than a year, and nothing has been done,” he said. “It doesn’t make sense. I only see it getting worse and worse.”

Back at the 24th Street Mission Station BART plaza, Pete, an unpermitted vendor who declined to provide his last name, said he wouldn’t be deterred by the threat of fines and citations. On Thursday morning, public works confiscated half the items that he intended to sell. Still, he returned in the afternoon with suitcases full of women’s clothing that he planned to hawk for a few dollars apiece. 

“It’s not gonna quit,” he said. “We’re just gonna find another place or way to do it.”