City sets public hearing for food trucks downtown News Staff Fri, 03/01/2024 - 1:11 pm
- (THOMAS WALLNER | THE GRAHAM LEADER) The Kona Ice food truck hands a cup of ice to a visitor at the 2023 Food Truck Championship of Texas on the Graham downtown square. The Graham City Council will host a public meeting in April regarding a policy for food trucks on the square aside from events.
Thomas Wallner editor@grahamleader.com
Graham City Council this week approved a draft policy for allowing food trucks on the downtown square and set a public hearing in April to have the public voice their concerns or support.
City Manager Eric Garretty presented a draft policy Thursday, Feb. 29 for the council to use as a base for discussion during the public hearing set for 6 p.m. Monday, April 8.
“We would publicize that policy as a part of the public hearing and then invite comments on the policy,” Garretty said. “You could always go back and amend it later. Or if you just wanted to have a draft policy at the public hearing, it’s up to you.”
Under the draft policy, three food truck spaces would be allotted on a first-come, first-serve basis on the southern half of the square. The vendors must register with the Graham code enforcement officer to be eligible for a space. If the number of entries exceeded the three on the policy, a random selection would be made.
“Say it fills up and you have more that come in, then you would make everybody that is submitting for that particular period... put their names in a hat and draw them out until you get to three spaces,” Garretty said.
Mayor Alex Heartfield said the city has enough space present downtown to allow more than three spots, but more discussion will be had on the topic at the public hearing in April.
The hours of operation for food trucks on the square would be Sundays from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. The city may offer other dates of availability on a case-by-case basis, such as in conjunction with an event where food trucks are present.
The vendors must comply with the city ordinances and have a health inspection certificate, a valid sales tax certificate and proof of liability insurance. The vendors will be responsible for utilities such as electrical, water service, wastewater disposal and solid waste removal.
A $30 permit fee per rental instance will be assessed for an allotment on the square. The city has the right to revoke any food truck vendor permit in instances of misconduct by the vendor, failure to maintain cleanliness of the space, or failure to maintain compliance with the policy.
The city manager said the policy will still need more work and the council will have to pass a resolution in the future if they wish to enact it.
Three individuals in the city reached out to Garretty regarding food trucks and brick and mortar restaurants in the city and primarily on the downtown square.
“All of them said they’re not averse to competition, but the issue is a brick and mortar restaurant is going to have higher overhead than a food truck so they don’t feel like they are making a level playing field in the same competitive area. That is pretty much a consistent comment that I got,” he said.
Council member Jack Little said he wanted the council to come to a solution that would be beneficial to both sides.
“We have to figure out what’s fair to both parties. …We have to take employees (into consideration). I mean, there’s a lot we have to consider but be fair to both parties and be fair to the constituents, the citizens, of this town,” he said. “It’s a tough call but we’ve got to figure it out where it’s fair to everybody.”
After receiving a request in January to have a food truck once a month on the Graham downtown square, the Graham City Council tabled and then denied the request Thursday, Feb. 15 in order to host a public hearing and have the public voice their concerns or support.
In January, Alexander Smith, who owns the Panda Pearl boba truck in Graham, made a request to the city to have access to the square once a month and cited the Chick-fil-A food truck, which was given access to the square in September 2023. Smith requested an electrical hookup, if available, and said he would pay for power usage.
In a reply to Smith’s request, the city manager said the city could only permit a truck to be in the southern half of the downtown square, due to the remaining half being within the ownership of Young County.
The council agreed to establish a public hearing at a future date to discuss the issue with the public. During the meeting Thursday, councilman Little invited all interested parties to come to the meeting in April.
“I think it would be good if… the food truck vendors, the brick and mortar and the citizens would holler at us to let us know their opinions,” he said. “We’re still trying to gather facts and try to come up with something that’s fair for everybody.”
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