The City Council passes a food-truck pilot program that will begin in April.
By Naomi Hofferber | [email protected]
The Iowa City City Council, on a 7-0 vote, adopted a food-truck pilot program Tuesday night that would allow food trucks to operate from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. They will operate in three locations for one month at each site.
The April location will be on North Clinton Street near the East Side residence halls, the May location will be in the Robert A. Lee Recreation Center parking lot, and the June location will be on Dubuque Street under the Biology Buildings walkway. The council decided on the locations taking into account the location of brick-and-mortar restaurants and the amount of foot traffic.
A kickoff event for the food trucks will take place March 31 in the Robert A. Lee Recreation Center parking lot.
Barry Nelson, the vice president of operations of Panchero’s Mexican Grill, noted concerns that the brick-and-mortar restaurants had about issues of fairness and competition.
“The brick-and-mortar restaurants that have been here have been here for decades,” Nelson said. “Success came hard, and it was a long time coming. The brick-and-mortar operators have taken a great deal of personal risk. They have all worked together to create this environment that we have now. As brick-and-mortar restaurants, and as people, they were here the whole time regardless of season, regardless of weather, regardless of the time of day. There is a great deal of opposition to the idea of food trucks operating downtown. In the end, we simply just want and ask for due deliberation.”
Kyle Sieck, the owner of Local Burrito Catering and a member of the Iowa City Mobile Vending Association, spoke in support of the pilot program.
“We don’t want to be setting up in front of people’s businesses, creating conflict, disrespecting people. That’s not what a healthy food-truck culture is about,” he said. “I truly believe that food trucks can address the underserved areas; the dorms, they’re underserved at nighttime.”
Sieck said vendors at the Robert A. Lee parking lot location could provide a non-alcoholic late-night environment for people.
“The citizens love food trucks [it increases the vitality of our community,” he said. “We can figure out how to make it happen in a delicate way.”
Councilor Kingsley Botchway said he sees food trucks as entrepreneurial and supports the food-truck culture element in Iowa City, not only downtown.
“I still believe we should not necessarily be focusing just on downtown,” Botchway said. “I live currently on the Southeast Side, and even when I lived on the West Side, there are some times at night where I’ve appreciated being able to just pop down the street and grab something from that standpoint instead of having to think about going all the way downtown.”
The May location of the food trucks will give easy food access to UI students living in the East Side dorms.
“Many, many years ago, I lived in Currier, so a food truck having been there in that area many years ago would have been wonderful between 10 and 2,” Councilor Pauline Taylor said.