Mardi Gras vendors who pay for security and other services are not happy about what they call unanswered questions.
Organizers have spent nearly a year preparing for the big Mardi Gras celebration in downtown Port Arthur.
"I'm really not happy," said one registered vendor, Patrick Acevedo. "We pay the rent."
Acevedo has been paying to set up his dessert stand inside the gates for the past eleven years. However, he believes outside vendors hurt his business.
"As long as they have permission to be on the property they are on, and meet the guidelines we can't deny their applications," said Lacy Brown, Chief Sanitarian at the Port Arthur Health Department.
Some have claimed that vendors outside the gates don't face the same health inspections. According to Brown, that's not the case.
"They still have to have a hand wash station, a three compartment sink, thermometers, and a way to keep the food cool and hot," said Brown.
Mardi Gras of Southeast Texas believes the city should create a buffer zone to protect the organization and its longtime vendors.
"I have a crew that does inspections and they are given a set of vendors to inspect by the address they are at," said Brown.
This includes vendors inside and outside the gates.
According to the Port Arthur Health Department, applications for temporary vendors are no longer available and workers will be monitoring where vendors set up.