Food truck owners upset with City of Albuquerque over major permit fee increase

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – It’s a permit fee nearly six times what it was before, making local food truck owners afraid of losing their businesses for good. However, now that fee increase is being delayed.

“It’s like closing a restaurant, you know,” said Skylar Wallace, owner of Las Chanclitas 3.

The City of Albuquerque is facing heat from local food trucks, saying their recent change in permit fee is outrageous.

“Just recently, we found out that our environmental health permit is being increased from 150 dollars to 900 dollars,” said Wallace.

Wallace is fighting the fee change, and she’s not the only one.

“We’re all trying to figure out why we’re getting attacked as a small business community, and all we want to do is serve good food to our community,” said Michael Mondragon, owner and operator of Mighty Mike’s Meats Food Truck.

A food service and retail ordinance, passed back in May by Albuquerque City Council, went into effect at the beginning of August.

Food truck owners attended a meeting this past Friday to voice their concerns, but they said they were not allowed to ask about the fee.

The city responded by pressing pause on the permit fee, pending further input from the community, but Mondragon still has questions, “I already paid. I don’t know how many of my other food truck owners have paid. So, with that being paused, are we going to get a refund with the new structure?”

In addition, both trucks are facing parking citations, which they said makes it harder for them to operate their businesses. They’re hoping the city responds to these concerns in the upcoming city council meeting.

“Show us, not me, show my community, show us small business owners, where the money’s going,” said Mondragon.

Owner of Mighty Mike’s Meats Food Truck said he will attend Monday’s City Council meeting at 5 p.m., joined by other food truck and small business owners with hopes of collaborating on a more reasonable solution.

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