Food trucks were run out of Jefferson Parish shortly after the mobile meal vendors rolled in to feed Katrina recovery workers. But under a measure that the Parish Council will consider Wednesday (Feb. 27), they would be welcome once weekly in Fat City. The resolution is the latest tool that parish officials are unsheathing to resuscitate Metairie's former nightlife...
Food trucks were run out of Jefferson Parish shortly after the mobile meal vendors rolled in to feed Katrina recovery workers. But under a measure that the Parish Council will consider Wednesday (Feb. 27), they would be welcome once weekly in Fat City.
The resolution is the latest tool that parish officials are unsheathing to resuscitate Metairie's former nightlife district. It would let food trucks set up on private property there Tuesdays between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. The measure's sponsor, Councilwoman Cynthia Lee-Sheng, said she hopes the truck owners limit operations to a four-hour mid-day window.
The goal, according to the resolution, is to emulate cities such as San Francisco, Raleigh, N.C., Miami and Salt Lake City that have permitted food trucks "because they help to create a dynamic streetscape that encourages people to come out." Closer to home, food trucks have both fans and foes in New Orleans, where City Councilwoman Stacy Head is trying to make it easier for them to operate but her colleagues are not so enthusiastic.
Lee-Sheng thinks food trucks could help Fat City morph into the "vibrant, mixed-use, pedestrian-oriented neighborhood" envisioned by its 2009 strategic plan. The following year, the Parish Council rezoned the entire area, discouraging stand-alone bars and outlawing "adult" businesses such as strip joints.
But food trucks would compete with fixed restaurants in and near Fat City, Lee-Sheng acknowledged. And Tommy Cvitanovich, who runs the popular Drago's restaurant in Fat City, expressed wariness.
"I like food trucks. I've eaten at food trucks. I intend to continue eating at food trucks. It's a great trend," Cvitanovich said Tuesday. "But it has to be a level playing field. They've got to be safe. They've got to be inspected."
Tommy Cvitanovich, Drago's proprietor, has concerns about food truck rules.
The president of the New Orleans Food Truck Coalition, Rachel Billow, said food trucks can enhance retail businesses, including storefront restaurants, because they attract pedestrians. While relatively few people walk in Fat City now, thousands drive and shop nearby and could be drawn in by the notion of a "food truck food court," she said.
Under Lee-Sheng's resolution, vendors would be required to obtain an occupational license and permit, keep the sales location clean and pay sales taxes. They would be allowed to provide their own seating. Restrooms would not be mandatory.
With narrow streets and little right of way, Fat City doesn't have much public property on which food trucks could operate even if permitted. Thus Lee-Sheng said vendors would need to "partner with a local business, like in a parking lot."
Rolling restaurants have not been warmly greeted in Jefferson Parish. After Hurricane Katrina, "taco trucks" turned up in several locations, initially to feed the recovery and rebuilding workforce but eventually attracting a local clientele with fast, cheap food and a hip cachet. In 2007, however, the Parish Council adopted a new law making it impractical for them to operate legally. It forbids them on many major streets that have special guidelines for landscaping and buffer space, requires vendors to reapply for permits if they move to a new location for more than 30 minutes and mandates permanent restrooms.
That law remains on the books. Lee-Sheng's resolution would exempt Fat City for 12 to 18 months and establish temporary rules, while asking the Planning Department and Planning Advisory Board to study making the changes permanent.