Mark R. wrote:Attached is an article from the Asheville newspaper regarding mobile food operations that was written by the board of directors of the Asheville independent restaurant association. Interestingly they are not opposed to the subject and they want to work with the government to set up a fair permitting process. Be sure to also read the link that discusses their concerns.
Citizen-Times ArticleI wonder if the local restaurants here in Louisville are of the same opinion?
Actually Mark, more interesting than the article is the restaurant associations "position paper" on the subject (link below). Basically despite stating their support for the mobile concept, I read this paper as kind of an "Ehhhhhhhh, we kinda support this but
only under certain conditions" (my words and interpretation) In any case, I don't get the impression that mobile venders will be welcome with "warm fuzzies" without certain restrictions in place.
http://www.airasheville.org/pages/mobilevending The position paper is interesting reading but lengthy. For those that don't have the time or the gumption to swallow the entire paper, here is the paragraph I found most interesting, the "bold" words are of course my own):
"In researching the impact of mobile vending in other cities and communities, we see one common thread – those cities who have not set up the proper rules, regulations and infrastructure to oversee and manage this burgeoning trend are now struggling to deal with the complex issues related to mobile vending. Several cities, including Washington, DC, Los Angeles and Austin, Texas, are now revising their ordinances to make them more restrictive. Portland, OR -- previously held up as a positive example in some regards -- is also discussing adding new restrictions to manage challenges in what is now a saturated market. As a result of these significant hiccups, other major cities who have recently implemented or are in the process of implementing food truck ordinances, such as Chicago and Minneapolis, have been more prudent in implementing such ordinances.
In addition, Asheville is not as large as these metropolitan areas with active food truck ordinances and zoning. We suggest as part of the city’s due diligence that some quantitative research be conducted to understand what level of mobile vending a market the size of Asheville can support, especially in our Central Business Districts. It is imperative that we pause, study, learn and consider how other cities, who are recognized for the best practices supporting mobile vendors, are making it happen"
