okay, the NY Times posted an answer to my question....

The vendors are being moved out for the Christmas market but won't be allowed back in later.

Here is the link; must be a NY Times member to view it free until 11/27. (Membership is free.)
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/11/20/in...gewanted=print

I agree, 5alive---I also thought the Trevi Fountain was a lot more hectic than Piazza Navona.

SusanP, thanks for posting the info about the licenses. It's too bad that wasn't considered an acceptable solution. I wonder why not, though? Seems like if the officials just enforced the licenses there'd be no problem. (Although that's easy for me to say, I know!)

I think overall, I will miss them. I was just there in September and didn't feel harrassed. We noticed that there seemed to be more vendors than ever - but also more young people and general activity.

I recommend Trevi fountain at night - people coming and going, but not overly crowded. It seemed much more romantic to me to see the golden colors reflecting from the lights off the marble and the waters twinkling in the moonlight.

I think the true artists should be able to get a license or permit to be in Piazza Novona. The people selling junk should not be allowed. We couldn't even get near the fountains in June. I've been there many times and this last time it had gotten completely out of control.

jkstrouse, I wondered the same thing, why they couldn't just enforce the law and keep those without a license out. I guess they'd have to have a couple of cops there all the time and they probably don't want to do that. I was there in late Sept, and although it was crowded in the evening, it was nowhere near as bad as at the Trevi Fountain in the afternoon.

They do have police around Piazza Navona all the time.

I realize that they probably have police around there all the time (although I don't remember seeing any). I guess I meant that they would have to have a few who just were in charge of keeping unlicensed vendors out.

3 years ago when I was there, it was the evening, and we saw a police car going around the piazza and then all of a sudden there was a handful of purse vendors scooping up their merchandise and running out of the piazza like crazy....

last time I was there with my parents, I couldn't wait to show them the beautiful Piazza Navona. What we saw was a chaotic mess of vendors, it was like the midway at a state fair. It was horrible. I ended up showing her a picture at a postcard stand of what I had intended her to see. Of course, it had to have been taken in the wee hours of the morning since it was quite empty.