I was under the impression, as a business owner in Westfield, that you needed a special permit to sell any merchandise outdoors. All restaurants are required to get a permit for outdoor dining. How does this differ from any other business in town?
Besides, I think it is appalling!

Assuming it's legal, as far as zoning/permits etc are concerned (I don't know the answer to that), if the property owner/investor has identified an opportunity to make his/her land more profitable by renting out a portion to this vendor, then that's the property owner's business and not for the rest of us to decide. I don't see why any of this is newsworthy or any of our business. Likewise, if one of us decided to rent out a room in our home to try and bring in an extra few hundred dollars a month, assuming no laws are being broken, it would be nobody else's business to give their opinion for or against. If the operator of the tent and/or owner of the property have violated any rules about zoning/permits, then that is a matter for town government / police to handle and not for the rest of us to chime in and vote if we think it's "tacky" or "innovative." And to say "It's tacky and has no place in Westfield" comes off as sounding kind of elitist.

When I saw it, I was wondering where the rest of the street fair was.

I love it. A guy came up with a way to make a buck and found a place to work. Maybe it's not as pretigious as commuting to New York for the desk job, but when the hype of it all dies down, he will pack up and be gone. Westfield, don't sweat it.