On the first weekend of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, city officials shut down several street vendors in the Fair Grounds neighborhood just outside of entry gates.
Though the area is part of a “Clean Zone” — a section where business is restricted by the city government — the crackdown caught some vendors by surprise, many of whom said they’ve been left alone to operate in the area for years.
Scott Holmberg, who has operated a craft stand outside of Jazz Fest for nearly 30 years, said for decades he and other vendors have been able to operate with limited enforcement…