Which Los Angeles markets run on a weekly schedule?
The sourced weekly markets include Hollywood on Sundays, Santa Monica on Wednesdays from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., Alhambra on Sundays from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., and Monterey Park and South Pasadena on Thursdays from 4 to 8 p.m. The Rose Bowl Flea Market is held on the second Sunday of the month.
Hollywood's Sunday market draws about 10,000 visitors. Santa Monica's meets on Wednesdays from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., and Alhambra's certified market meets Sundays from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 100 S. Second Street. Monterey Park's runs year-round on Thursdays from 4 to 8 p.m. at 350 S. McFerrin Avenue, and South Pasadena's runs rain or shine on Thursdays from 4 to 8 p.m. at Meridian Avenue and Mission Street.
The Rose Bowl Flea Market fills the 3.3-mile loop around Brookside Park on the second Sunday of each month with over 2,500 vendors. That is a very different scale from a neighborhood market, and it calls for planning that looks more like a large event than a Thursday evening.
These are the facts we have; we do not know each market's own toilet arrangements, and each organizer or city sets them. If you run a market, call and we will connect you with a provider.
What does Los Angeles County say about toilets and handwashing at food events?
For events with two or more temporary food facilities or three or more mobile food facilities, LA County Public Health asks for a Community Event Organizer Permit, one toilet for each 15 food employees within 200 feet of a booth, and one handwashing sink for every four public toilets.
The program, run by Environmental Health, covers events of a civic, political, public or educational nature. Applications are due 30 days before the event, and no less than two weeks. Under it, each food booth, truck or cart needs a toilet for each 15 food employees within 200 feet, with a handwashing sink beside it that has warm water at 100 F, liquid soap, single-use towels and a trash container.
For the public, the same program asks for adequate permanent or portable toilets, with one handwashing sink for every four toilets. We do not know whether your particular market falls under that program, so ask Environmental Health and tell the provider what it says.
Handwashing is the point. A row of toilets with no sink beside it does not meet the intent of that rule, so plan the handwash stations at the same time as the units.
How do you place toilets at a market without losing stalls?
Place units at the edge of the market, within reach for shoppers but away from food stalls, on firm level ground, with a clear route for the servicing truck and a path an ADA user can follow. Many markets use the same spot each week so everyone knows where to look.
On a closed street, the ends of the block are the usual choice, where a truck can enter before barriers are set or after they come down. In a lot or a park, the edge nearest the road works, as long as the ground is firm and flat. Tell the provider whether the market's street closes and when, because the driver has to reach the spot while access is open.
A flea market on a loop, like Brookside Park's, needs units at several points on the loop so no one walks the whole circuit to find one. Ask the provider about where servicing trucks can reach on a park loop on a market day.
Keep the units apart from where food is prepared or sold. Industry guidance seen in published blogs often cites about 100 feet between toilets and food; that is not an LA rule, so ask the provider and Environmental Health.
