On Thursday afternoon, a few feet from Pier 33, Carmen was chopping pineapple on a plastic table, preparing small fruit cups she hoped to sell to tourists returning from visits to Alcatraz Island. Nearby, several hot dog vendors played music from a small speaker as they grilled food on a warm February day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
For Carmen, it was an opportunity to recoup the money she had invested in fruit for the week before it spoiled. For the past few days, she told El Tecolote<\/em>, she and her husband had driven around the pier, discouraged by the constant presence of city workers who, since last spring, have regularly seized food carts from food vendors without permits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c[On Wednesday] one of the people from the city told me they would be bothering us every day because of the Super Bowl,\u201d Carmen said.<\/em> \u201cBut either way, they don\u2019t really let us work here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n At 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, seeing the pier momentarily empty, Carmen and her husband decided to set up her fruit stand. Her husband had errands to run and proposed leaving her his hot dog cart, but Carmen declined, worried about the warnings she had been issued. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Three hours later, her fears proved to be true. Staff from the San Francisco Department of Public Works (DPW), the Department of Public Health (DPH) and officers from the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) surrounded Carmen and the three nearby hot dog vendors. <\/p>\n\n\n\n City workers confiscated the hot dog carts, placing \u2018Impounded\u2019 stickers on their sides. As Carmen attempted to rush away with her fruit cart, a DPW employee chased her down and seized it as well. Despite soft protests from the vendors, city employees loaded the carts into a car. They handed vendors Spanish-language SFDPH pamphlets, letting them know that they needed permits to continue selling food on the street. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In the days leading up to the Super Bowl, which is set to take place in Santa Clara, San Francisco has been hosting a number of themed events as it welcomes tourists from across the country. There has also been a noticeable increase in the presence of local, regional and federal officials in tourist-heavy areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mayor Daniel Lurie has said the goal is to \u201cprovide a safe, welcoming experience\u201d for visitors and residents alike, citing concerns about criminal activity that can accompany large-scale events, including human trafficking. <\/p>\n\n\n\n But some advocates and vendors note that part of keeping San Francisco \u201cwelcoming\u201d this week has included ramping up operations that, for the past year, have pushed certain groups<\/a>, including unpermitted food vendors, from city streets. <\/p>\n\n\n\n