Street vending is a major form of informal urban employment and is closely related to local livelihoods, everyday use of public space, and the quality of urban landscape. It can increase activity diversity, support the vitality of public spaces, and provide income for vulnerable citizens. However, when its growth is not managed, it can encroach on public space, interfere with pedestrian movement, create visual clutter, and reduce the legibility of urban environment. This applied, descriptive-analytical qualitative study examines the effects of street vending on urban landscape within the historic fabric of District 8 in the metropolis of Tabriz. Data were collected through documentary research, field observations, photography, examination of vendor management policy documents, and semi-structured interviews with four urban officials and 30 street vendors. The analysis combined thematic analysis, comparative descriptive evaluation, and data triangulation. Thematic analysis shows that street vending has several dimensions, including livelihood conditions, factors influencing vendor location, behavioral diversity, spatial organization, effects on the historical landscape, social attachment to place, and perceived environmental quality. In addition to providing income, vending creates repeated interactions between vendors and buyers and contributes to different patterns of using public space. Vendor locations are strongly influenced by pedestrian flows and proximity to commercial nodes. In areas with a high concentration of vendors, these activities can restrict pedestrian movement and obscure historical landmarks. The analysis identified informal territorial practices, everyday informal agreements, social support networks, and livelihood resilience. Although street vending contributes to social vitality, high spatial density can increase congestion and affect how the landscape is perceived. Interviews with urban officials further indicate that problems in existing management practices are associated with weaknesses in policy formulation, limited coordination among institutions, and fragmented interventions. These findings point to the need for a participatory and gradual approach to the management of street vending.