“We, the staff and students of El Camino College want our vendor program to continue.”

This was the opening petition statement for five pages of signatures gathered by the vendors during the waning days before their contract with EC ran out Oct. 31.

The vendors have been selling their wares on a campus for 25 years and they were a colorful and sometimes necessary addition to the drab school atmosphere.

The petition was sent to college president Dr. Thomas Fallo, but the students were not notified of the cancellation of the vendor program.

The reasons for the cut contract are murky.

The vendors claim that the reason for their cancellation of services was that there was a conflict of interest between the Roadium swap meet and the vendors.

The vendors were told that the Roadium, which has a contract with EC to provide bus transportation on the weekends in Parking Lot L on Crenshaw Boulevard and therefore pays the school for this service, told the college to cancel their contract with vendors because they were taking business away.

The college administration said that EC is not a space for vendors because our mission is to educate the students and not to offer commercial opportunities.

Some students, staff and vendors do not believe the story that was told to the vendors.

Vendors said that the Roadium is looking to blame others because business is slow for them.

The vendors are here 10 days out of the semester.

The Roadium transportation is only available on the weekends.

We have approximately one vendor a week and the most they make a day is approximately $300.

How does this add up?

Is this situation a measly flexing of administrative muscle because vendors were considered an eyesore?

Some students and staff don’t agree with the administrator’s view.

Various EC staff are disturbed because this was a convenient shopping reprieve and something they really liked is now being taken away.

They had built relationships with the vendors and relied on the vendor’s unique array of gifts, jewelry, paintings and posters.

Students are mourning the loss because it was interesting to walk by and see the items on display.

Many other community colleges and universities have vendors which add depth and a fresh spending opportunity, instead of having to buy everything from the bookstore.

It’s not like the vendors were making money without paying for their right to be here.

Each vendor paid $50 a day to the bookstore and parked their goods in front.

It is nice for students and staff to have unique and interesting products available for them and the vendor program can facilitate this.

The vendor program promotes cultural diversity and adds a different element to this campus.

Vendor contracts need to be reinstated as soon as possible.