At a recent meeting of the Historic Park City Alliance, Main Street merchants were briefed on the city’s plans to allow food trucks in the area.
Alliance Director Michael Barille said the trucks can work, but they will need to keep an eye on them.
The group heard from the city’s Economic Development Director, Jonathan Weidenhammer. Barille said the merchants certainly have concerns about the trucks, such as their location, and their impact on brick and mortar businesses.
“Yeah I think definitely some concerns about particularly the use of Bob Wells Plaza.” Barille explained, “Being in the heart of the district, and sort of some of our most easily accessible parking in the district. We know that will take up some parking, and more importantly that it’s sort of a direct competition with our businesses that have spent a long hard time trying to figure out how to make the rents and having a permanent year-round business in this district work. We just want to make sure it’s something that adds to the district and isn’t just a competitive element.”
The trucks would be operating during late night hours, from 10:00 pm to the early morning.
“However, set-up will start sometime after 5:00 in the afternoon.” Barille continued, “So, there’s that issue of needing to set-up and get trash containers arranged and deliveries and those kinds of things. Then I think the other pieces are trying to make sure it’s an even playing field from our perspective. When our permanent restaurants want to do outdoor dining decks during the summer, they have a rental fee for the parking spaces. So, we ask the council to carry that methodology through and I believe that’s what ended up in the final policy. There’s a shortage of places for trash in the district so many of our merchants have shared containers that they each pay a fee into. We’re hoping that the trash gets managed in a similar way. We just want to make sure that the management and the operations are something that maintains the walkability, the cleanliness, and the presentation that everyone else works so hard in the district to maintain.”
He said for now, the city will see if trash from the truck operations can be handled by public containers. Barille said the city has been trying to work with merchants.
“They heard our concerns and decided to proceed anyway but with some of those concerns represented in the operational characteristics.” Barille said, “The other piece that I appreciate is that they’ve given a preference for local businesses to respond to the RFP and have a higher point ranking. So maybe we’ll see a couple of the merchants, the restaurants on the street use that as a secondary outlet and participate in that way. Then it’ll feel like something that’s of and by the district anyway”
The trucks have been allowed due to a change in a state law.
“What state code required is that you allow them in the district where other restaurants are allowed on private property.” Barille explained, “The use of public property was a next step of consideration and something they wanted to try to see if it added some vibrancy. So we’ll see how it goes.”
