Thousands of people have been coming over recent months and years to Lighthouse Food Rescue and Distribution in San Jose, Calif., because they want to eat.
The food distribution program has worked with retailers, suppliers and more to set up a program offering free food from the sidewalk.
Cue city officials, who now are threatening $20,000-a-day fines if the free food program isn’t taken off the sidewalks and shut down completely.
Pastor Ralph Olmos, whose organization started the work, said, “Do I stand with the people? Do I stop? And do I stop doing the thing that it seems like God has put me here for?”
He took an old liquor store and two meth labs next door and turned it into a free grocery line.
Only in California. A San Jose pastor hands out FREE groceries to over 1,000 people a week. The city just told him: shut it down in 60 days or pay up to $20,000 PER DAY. PASTOR RALPH OLMOS: “Do I stand with the people? Do I stop? And do I stop doing the thing that it seems like God has put me here for?” What’s the violation? The block is zoned residential, and the line of people waiting for food spills onto the sidewalk. The city says the pantry needs a special use permit. Price tag: up to $15,500. Pastor Ralph turned an old liquor store, with two meth labs next door, into a free grocery line. And people on the sidewalk is what the city has a problem with. What good deed will California find to make illegal next?
— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) October 8, 2026
A report at the San Jose Spotlight said the fight brought by the city is over zoning rules.
The ministry was cited for having its distribution procedures “on the sidewalk.”
Further, the city claims such help is not allowed in residential areas.
The citation demands immediate removal from the sidewalks and total shutdown within 60 days, or that $20,000-a-day fine will appear.
“I’m up against the wall,” Olmos, president and CEO of the food pantry, told San José Spotlight. “It’s almost like (the city is) telling me to stop. But my conviction says, ‘How can I leave the people?’”
Supporters say the pantry is a lifeline for the community and serves families, older adults, homeless and those with disabilities, the report confirmed.
Thousands of people benefit, the report said.
The report noted a needed special use permit could cost more than $15,000.
“Due to community protest, the San Jose City Council voted unanimously in 2022 to waive special use permit fees for food pantries or to create a program that would fund special use permits,” the report noted.
But, the report noted, Marika Krause of the city Planning, Building and Code Enforcement Department said the zoning has since changed and a special use permit is no longer an option.
While the city claims its inspectors are trying to find “a suitable path forward,” Olmos said he’d been given no advance notice of the city’s problem.
There’s already a backlash from the community against the city’s agenda:
Keep Lighthouse Food Pantry Open and in the Community – Sign the Petition! https://t.co/Mg63VmDtm0 via @Change
— kebone☭🇻🇳 (@Keboneee) October 8, 2026
