Food trucks have been exploding in popularity over the past decade and rising costs all but ensure that trend will continue. Food trucks require less start up funding and the ability to pivot to cater to different consumers.
With this increase in popularity of food trucks in general, there has been an increase in demand for spaces dedicated to hosting multiple food trucks.
This space could be in the form of a temporary event that occurs weekly, monthly or just a few times a year. Some cities are choosing to allow temporary food trucks as workers are going back to offices and discovering lunch options have dwindled over the past couple years.
Food truck courts are also becoming more common. These are sites with designated spaces for food trucks to temporarily set up so the offerings can rotate. Food truck courts can be hugely beneficial to areas with large employment centers that experience high traffic for lunch or dinner break, for areas that lack permanent food options, or long vacant lots.
Requirements to regulate food truck courts can vary widely, but at a minimum, cities’ regulations typically include requirements for trash receptacles, restroom facilities, sitting areas, and specific permitted hours of operation. Other amenities such as decorative lighting, stages for live performance, public art, etc. are also common.
At Kendig Keast Collaborative, we recognize the need to stay up-to-date on nationwide trends as well as the community’s desire for high-quality outcomes. We draft clear and easy-to-understand, use-specific standards with built-in mechanisms to verify standards are being met through an administrative review or a public meeting with a commission, board or council.
These standards can include a variety of requirements including the number of food trucks spaces permitted on a food truck court site, what zoning district(s) it is permitted in, what amenities are required, etc.
By using enCodePlus to write and update community zoning ordinances and unified development codes, we incorporate tables and graphics, when appropriate, that clearly illustrate standards.
One of the enCodePlus features, the Land Use Lookup Tool, can be used to quickly look up a use – such as a Food Truck Court or Temporary Uses – to understand where is it permitted, what the standards are, and what process is required for approval.
