Speaker 4: That concludes public comment.
Speaker 2: Thank you. Now we'll move forward with item 19, please.
Speaker 0: Communication from Councilwoman Allen Councilman's and Diaz. Vice Mayor Richardson Recommendation to request city manager to work with the Health and Human Services Department to provide an overview of the food safety program, education and enforcement at food facilities.
Speaker 2: Thank you, Councilwoman Allen.
Speaker 6: Yes, thank you, Vice Mayor. I brought this item in response to some concerns that I have heard raised by restaurant owners in my district and which I know they have also been echoed elsewhere in the city. There are 2200 operators in our city and that's a huge number. These operators are small business owners, families, community partners. They are also donors who support youth sports leagues, neighborhood associations and their innovations in food and their continued presence in Long Beach are helping drive the city's economic and the tourism resurgence. Over the past two years, restaurants and caterers in Long Beach and across this country has suffered challenge after challenge. And it's become apparent that there is a disconnect here. So I would like us as a council to ask the health department to update us on their processes, especially with sidewalk vending and food truck regulatory processes starting. We must reassure the brick and mortar operators that fairness is is top of mind. We also ensure that fairness is the starting point for inspections and for regulations for both brick and mortar and for the mobile food facilities. Thank you.
Speaker 2: Thank you. Councilwoman Sara.
Speaker 0: Yes. I just want to add my support to this item. This is a great item, Councilwoman Allen, and thank you for council members and Dana and vice mayor for signing on. I just want to reiterate how important it is to make sure there is clarity around the education and process, as we do want to consider how we're doing and ensuring everyone has the appropriate information to do business because that's really what we want to make sure we do, is ensure our businesses are successful, that they're not limited or hindered by some of these process if we are able to make them available and clear, especially for our sidewalk vendors as we're going to be moving through with our state legislation process and other ways that we're going to try to make sure we support their business as well as our brick and mortar. So just support this item. Great item.
Speaker 2: Thank you, Councilwoman Zendaya's.
Speaker 5: Thank you and thank you to Councilwoman Allen for bringing up this very, very important item. I think it's very important that we really look at how we can help our brick and mortar businesses that that are serving food. I think that in the last few years, it has been really hard, and that's only an understatement. And if you're a business owner out there, a restaurant in this town there, you know that that is very true. And one of the things that I think is important is for all of us to be on the same page and understand that there's certain things, certain processes that that our brick and mortar businesses have to go through. And with those processes can be then one of the things that's very important to me and why I support this item very much is that a lot of those fees sometimes hurt our businesses instead of helping them. And one of the things that we really want to do is be able to help these businesses, especially because if they thrive, all of our communities thrive. So very, very happy to support this side of things. Councilwoman.
Speaker 1: Thank you. You have emotion and a second believe there's no additional comments.
Speaker 4: If there is a.
Speaker 1: Common.
Speaker 4: Yes, there are any members of the public that would like to speak on item 19 in person. Please line up at the podium there. Any members of the public that would like to speak on item 19 in Zoom, please use the raise hand feature or dial star nine. No. In person.
Speaker 3: You know, I'm going to have to give Mr. Supernova's props, because I think that that nine one vote sorry, eight one vote that we had the other day was prophetic. We're going to have issues. City of Los Angeles is already starting to hunker down on the health and sanitary conditions of a lot of the vendors. It doesn't really make sense. I pay for a city license, a business license. I operate a storefront. I don't think it's fair for a lot of us in terms of preparation. What we have to deal with in comparison to the lack of those type of standards being applicable to people just because they're outside. I think that I want to be fair and courteous to the communities that those come from. But, you know, speaking from personal experience, you know, my grandmother almost died from a E.coli experience that she had with a sidewalk vendor. And so it's not to say or to cast that a shadow or a cloud on everyone. But, you know, I know if there's no operator health person going to every single thousands of people who are operating throughout the city and inspecting if they have a side thing or, you know, if they're up to standard. So there needs to be some type of byline that we can all bridge about because when liability is concern, I'm sure the city knows that it always lands in the lap of, you know, the general fund. So hopefully we can come to some agreement about what sanitation looks like for food preparation. And you know what? What's the future to be? Thank you.
Speaker 1: Thank you, Councilmember Cipriano.
Speaker 2: As long as Mr. Can for a reference meeting, I thought I should go ahead and speak. I know we have staff here, so if I could ask a question about health inspections now. It's my understanding that the health guidelines are established at the state level. If there's that if there's a training component locally, would that not have to be state driven? And if there's not an answer for that because you haven't looked into this yet, I completely accept that. But to my way of thinking, I didn't understand how a local health official who is burdened with making inspections would have the time or the authority to train individual operators in restaurants.
Speaker 0: Good afternoon, counsel. I'm from. My name is Morgan Warfield. I am with the Environmental, Health, Health and Human Services. I'm the operations officer. Thank you for having me here. The training does come from the state, either from California, Department of Health or sometimes from FDA. We have a standardization that is overseen by FDA. We also provide training every time that we have interaction with our food establishments, either it's from the owner or from the manager or any of the employees within the establishment.
Speaker 2: Okay. Thank you for that. And that's my understanding that what training comes about, then it's incumbent on the operator of the restaurant to go ahead and train staff. So based on that and the fact that I have not received any complaints from restaurant tours, that I will not be in support. Thank you.
Speaker 1: Thank you. There is a motion and a second. Members, please go and cast your votes.
Speaker 0: District one.
Speaker 1: Oh, I'm sorry. We actually need to do roll call. We have two folks that are virtual. So remarkable.
Speaker 0: District one. Right. District two i. District three. My district for NE District five. By District six I District seven, my district eight, our district nine high. Motion is carried eight one.
Recommendation to request City Manager to work with the Health and Human Services Department to report back to the City Council within 45 days to provide an overview of food safety program education and enforcement at food facilities and to propose recommendations to substantially address concerns raised by local restaurant operators and residents.