San Juan Lowers Fees for Out-of-Town Vendors

By lowering fees for out-of-town businesses, San Juan Capistrano City Council members say they hope to keep vendors from leaving local festivals and help keep downtown a destination, despite construction blocking the Ortega/I-5 interchange.

"This goes along the line of what we're trying to do to try to stay a viable place during the construction," Councilman Larry Kramer said Tuesday.

The city previously charged vendors who wanted to set up booths at events like the Second Saturday Art Fair $44.48. Now, the fee charged will be $11.30.

Councilman Derek Reeve said the move was the right step toward his goal to eliminate business license fees in the city.

"It's still my objective to eliminate this tax entirely," Reeve said, calling the fee an "evil empire of the business license tax."