Alliance leery of Rocky's artist plan

The leading promoters of downtown Salt Lake City are leaning against Mayor Rocky Anderson's push to liberalize citywide rules governing street artists.

The Downtown Alliance, in a rare-if-ever crosswise stance with the mayor, sent out letters to media outlets Friday, asserting that Anderson's plan is too lenient. It would increase the number of places artists can set up shop without having to first get a permit.

The alliance believes Anderson's plans will hurt existing businesses and downtown events such as the Farmers' Market at Pioneer Park and concerts at Gallivan Utah Center. The alliance has also sent letters to local businesses, urging them to attend a 7 p.m. Wednesday Town Hall meeting at the Pioneer Police Precinct, 1040 W. 700 South.

Further relaxing the regulations could, according to the alliance, create a streetscape comparable to the swap meet atmosphere in Tijuana, Mexico.

Anderson said Friday he has some "vast disagreements" with the alliance's concerns and wondered if some of the alliance's recommendations would be constitutional.

The mayor insists that his more liberal rules will boost economic development and create more action in business districts.

"We don't want this to be a flea market and I think we can prevent that with some regulations; however, those regulations have to be constitutional," he said.

Still, Anderson is open to ideas and, like the alliance, urges people to offer comment at the Wednesday night meeting.

If artists are able to operate in any city park or business districts without any city permit, as Anderson would like, they could set up anywhere, anytime, unannounced and begin hawking wares within a park or business district. The only restrictions would be limits on blocking entry ways, fire hydrants, entire sidewalks or otherwise interfering with the public right of way.

If the city adopted such loose restrictions on street artists, Anderson agrees that limiting the kind of "art" that could be sold could be problematic. For example, the present proposed ordinance would allow "artists" to sell reproduced art rather than original art.

Since reproduced art is difficult to define, such things as knickknacks would likely be allowed, thus bringing up flea market concerns. Businesses, said alliance economic development director Donald Adams, are concerned that street vendors could sell — on the street for no rent — the same items that existing businesses sell.

"A retail operator would be disappointed if someone were allowed to sell the same merchandise without any control right out in front of their store," Adams said.