A long-standing debate about food trucks will move to the front burner at town hall in St. Marys over the next several months, but a new bylaw regulating their use on public and private land isn’t likely to be ready by this summer.
Questions about where the so-called refreshment vehicles should be allowed to operate and how much the town should collect through fees has divided past councils since the owner of a well-established downtown french fry truck attempted to sell their business in 2016.
At the time, a request from potential buyers to continue operating under their predecessor’s agreement with town hall was deferred when councilors realized their “mobile canteen” bylaw hadn’t been updated since 1969.
The issue was revived at town hall Tuesday after this council’s attempt to modernize the food truck bylaw was derailed by the onset of the pandemic two years ago.
Since then, food trucks in St. Marys have been off limits on public property without permission from town hall, but that hasn’t stopped operators from opening up on private property – a gray area current bylaws don’t specifically address.
Brent Kittmer, the town’s chief administrator, told councilors Tuesday that staff have allowed food trucks to operate on some types of private land as long as they are considered an accessory to the property’s main use.
The problem is that the town’s five most popular food trucks have been serving the public – not just the businesses in the locations they’ve been established – and enforcement of the town’s rule of thumb has been difficult without a bylaw outlining a stricter set of rules .
That’s not sitting well with a number of advisers, especially since those food trucks aren’t paying any fees or taxes to operate.
“This seems to leave a giant work-around that I’m not sure our restaurant community is going to be entirely happy with,” Coun. Rob Edney said. “I feel like we need to put a little bit more teeth into it because, once the general public can go onto that private property, the whole point of this thing becomes null and void and it does leave a giant work-around for anyone with a truck that is looking to make money in the community (whereas) our restaurants, they pay their taxes, they pay their fair share.”
“I just think now that the food trucks have become more popular in town, you’re just hurting other businesses that are there supporting the community,” Coun. Jim Craigmile added. “I really believe it’s unfair competition.”
A draft bylaw discussed at town hall in 2018 included fees that ranged from $230 for a one-day license to $1,225 for an annual license, but council agreed with Kittmer after he suggested the specifics of the bylaw should be provided to downtown business owners and others stakeholders before they’re revived.
An updated bylaw should also outline the use of food trucks on public property, Kittmer suggested, something that wasn’t discussed previously.
“We need these on public property in our downtown now,” he said. “Our landscape is different post-pandemic. One of the common things we’ve heard from our tourists is there’s nowhere to eat downtown, and food trucks may very well, if properly regulated, fill that void.”
Town staff have committed to bringing a new draft bylaw back to council ,but Kittmer said it may not be ready in time for this summer.
“It needs to be a big bylaw.” he said. “I think your debate alone will drag this project out well into the summer months.”