Small business owners in Little India are urging Parramatta Council to support food carts and stalls staying open for longer, after thousands of dollars in fines were dished out to those caught operating after 7pm.
Wigram Street in Harris Park has been described as Sydney’s epicentre of Indian food, but come 7pm food carts and stalls are being forced to close or risk copping a hefty fine.
Calling it totally unfair, Little India Harris Park Business Association (LIHPBA) President Sanjay Deshwal said food cart operators have been issued fines ranging from $3,000 to $6,000.
“In the month of May, Council officers started visiting the food kiosks and the food stalls and without any warning they just said ‘you people have to close at 7pm’,” he told Parra News.
“Majority of the people agree that [food stalls] bring a certain charm and vibrancy to the area, and most of the people who we talk to say they’re drawn to the Little India precinct by these food kiosks and food shops and the restaurants.
“Only Wigram Street is being targeted and not the businesses on Marion Street and Station Street, which makes the shop people very unhappy.”
The fines are the result of Wigram Street being zoned residential – meaning the food stalls and carts can only operate between 7am and 7pm under the NSW State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP).
But Deshwal said the demographic of Wigram Street has changed significantly over the last ten years and it should no longer be considered residential – especially since it’s now known as Sydney’s ‘Little India’.
“Between Parkes Street and the Marion Street roundabout there are not even three or four houses – 98 per cent are businesses over there,” he added.
“How can people complain over there that they’re getting noise?”
Fighting against the current operating hours, a petition started by LIHPBA is urging Parramatta Council to freeze the fines and take the necessary action to declare Wigram Street a ‘business street’, which would permit food carts and stalls to operate until 10pm.
The petition was tabled at the latest Parramatta Council meeting.
“My first request is that these fines should be waved off and a proper warning [given] – as they say in Australia ‘a fair go’,” Deshwal said.
“They cannot kill the businesses by telling them to close at 7pm, we find it very unfair. Every shop keeper, every business owner is angry at it.”
But City of Parramatta said it’s not up to them to extend the operating hours of food carts on Wigram Street.
“The City of Parramatta is proud of its diverse food scene and encourages activities that add to our lively street culture like food trucks. However, businesses must operate within the law,” a City of Parramatta spokesperson said.
“Mobile food vendors on Wigram Street are operating under NSW Government legislation (SEPP) which restricts the operating hours of food trucks in residential areas to 7pm.
“Council has no power to change this legislation or the operating hours for food trucks and carts under this legislation.”
The spokesperson said Council has also been working with mobile food vendors and residents in the Harris Park area since 2023 to raise awareness of food safety and operating obligations.
“[That includes] running drop-in education sessions and providing a three-month enforcement amnesty between December 2023 and March 2024 to allow time for vendors to comply with the legislation,” the spokesperson added.
Ellie Busby is a news reporter for Western Sydney Publishing Group. A graduate of the University of Hertfordshire and Western Sydney University, she is a journalism Major. Ellie has worked with Universal Media, The Cova Project and for a range of other organisations. In 2024, Ellie was named Young Writer of the Year at the Mumbrella Publish Awards.