Last updated October 2, 2026

What changed: Named who runs OpenSpot Local, made the 18+ rule part of agreeing, and added a contact-us-first step for disputes and how we tell you about changes.

Terms of use

What OpenSpot Local is

OpenSpot Local ("we", "us") runs a venue-matching directory at openspotlocal.com. OpenSpot Local is operated by Ezekiel Madrigal, a sole proprietor in California. Hosts list spaces they're willing to share, vendors ask to use them, and the two deal with each other directly. The directory is passive: it shows listings and passes messages. We don't inspect properties, operate equipment, prepare, handle or sell food, verify anyone's food safety practices in person, or guarantee foot traffic, sales or that any request will be accepted. By listing a space, sending a request, joining as a vendor or leaving a review, you agree to these terms.

Hosts and vendors are independent

Hosts and vendors are independent commercial parties. Any arrangement to use a space is made between the host and the vendor alone. It is not a lease, license, sublease or contract with us, and we don't become a party to it by showing a listing, passing on a request, recording an answer or sending a reminder. Nobody using the site is our employee, agent, partner or joint venturer, and we aren't theirs.

Who can use it, and your page

• You must be at least 18 and able to act for the business you represent. Every form asks you to confirm both.
• There's no password. The link in our emails opens your page, where you manage your listing, profile and requests, so treat those emails as private: anyone with the link can act on your page.

What you post

• What you tell us must be true: who you are, where the space is, what it offers, and the permits you hold.
• You're responsible for what you post. Don't post anything unlawful, misleading, or that belongs to someone else.
• What you post stays yours. You give us a non-exclusive, royalty-free permission to store, show and share it (a listing on the site, a request with the host it's addressed to, a review on the listing it's about) for as long as it's on OpenSpot Local, and to use your business name and listing to promote the directory. The permission ends when you delete it, apart from copies already in short-lived backups.

Acceptable use

Don't use OpenSpot Local to:

• list a space you don't have the right to offer, or pretend to be a business you're not;
• send spam, advertising, or requests you don't mean to keep;
• harass, threaten or discriminate against anyone;
• collect other people's contact details for anything but the booking at hand;
• break the law, including food safety, health, zoning and licensing rules; or
• scrape the site, overload it, probe it for weaknesses, or get around its limits.

Site rules

• Leave no trace. Vendors haul out all trash, boxes, greywater and fryer oil. Nothing goes in the host's dumpster or down a storm drain.
• Arrival and departure. Thirty minutes before opening to set up, and thirty minutes after closing to clear out, unless the host agrees otherwise.
• Noise and house rules. Follow the host's noise policy and house rules exactly. No amplified sound unless the host approves it.

Permits, licenses and insurance

Vendors are independent businesses. Each vendor alone is responsible for local health permits, fire safety clearances, business licenses in the town where the space is, and following food safety law. Hosts are responsible for having the right to offer their space. Hosts and vendors each keep their own commercial insurance. We review permit numbers before a vendor is listed, but that check doesn't certify anyone.

Fees and payments

OpenSpot Local is free for hosts and vendors during our pilot. Listing a space, joining as a vendor, and requesting and confirming a booking cost nothing. We take no commission, there are no subscriptions, and nothing renews. We don't process, hold or track payments of any kind. If a host sets a daily fee or a share of sales, it's shown before you send a request, and it's settled directly between the host and the vendor, off the platform. Cancellations and refunds of a host's fee are covered by our refund policy.

Independent Operator Agreement

Every vendor accepts this agreement when they send a request, and every host accepts it again when they say yes to one. We record the time, the version of these terms and the IP address it came from on the booking.

• No inspection. OpenSpot Local does not inspect properties, spaces, vehicles, equipment or utilities, and does not verify physical food safety operations. Any permit check we make is a look at a number, not a certification of anyone.
• No agency or employment. OpenSpot Local is not the agent, employer, landlord, tenant, partner or representative of any host or vendor.
• Hold harmless. To the fullest extent the law allows, the host and the vendor each agree to hold harmless OpenSpot Local, its owners and its operators from any claims, municipal or city fines and citations, property damage, accidents, or physical injuries arising from a pop-up, a space, or any dealing between a host and a vendor.
• Indemnity. To the fullest extent the law allows, each host and each vendor agrees to defend and indemnify OpenSpot Local, its owners and its operators against any claim brought by anyone else that arises from that party's space, goods, conduct or breach of these terms, including reasonable legal fees.

Disputes, cancellations, weather and citations

We assume no liability for disputes between hosts and vendors, for cancellations or no-shows, for weather events, or for municipal citations, fines or enforcement. These are between the host and the vendor. Our cancellation policy sets the defaults: either side can cancel without penalty with 24 hours' notice, and either side can mark a day Weather Canceled before the shift starts. We keep the record of who canceled and when, but we don't decide who owes what.

Disclaimers and limits

The site is provided as is and as available, without warranties of any kind, including that it will be uninterrupted or error-free. Listings, menus, dates and reviews come from hosts and vendors, and we can't promise they're accurate or current. To the fullest extent the law allows, we aren't liable for indirect, incidental or consequential losses or lost profits, and our total liability for any claim is limited to $100. Some states don't allow some of these limits, so they apply to you only as far as your state's law allows.

Taking things down

We may edit, hide or remove any listing, request, profile or review, and may refuse service to anyone, particularly for false information, missing permits, unsafe conduct, or breaking these terms. You can pause your own listing at any time from your status page, or email us to have it removed.

Changes to these terms

We may update these terms. Each policy page shows when it last changed and what changed. If a change affects your rights, how we use information, or money, we also show a notice on your status page and may email you before it takes effect. If you keep using OpenSpot Local after a change takes effect, the new terms apply. If you don't agree, stop using the site and delete your details from your page.

If you have a problem with us

Email [email protected] first and tell us what's wrong and what you'd like. We'll try in good faith to settle it within 30 days before either of us goes to court. Either of us can still take a claim to small claims court. Nothing here makes you arbitrate or gives up your right to join a class action.

Governing law

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of California, without regard to its conflict-of-law rules. If you live in another state, nothing in these terms takes away any protection you have under the consumer laws of that state that can't be waived by agreement.

General

• These terms, the privacy policy and the refund policy are the whole agreement between you and us about the site.
• If a court finds part of them unenforceable, the rest still applies.
• If we don't enforce a term straight away, we haven't given it up.
• You can't transfer your rights under these terms to someone else without our agreement. We may transfer ours to whoever takes over running OpenSpot Local, and we'll tell you if we do.

Contact

Questions or complaints: [email protected].