Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

San Diego food trucks to oppose proposed regulations

"Unfair to the consumer that the city is protecting [restaurants]."

Next week, February 12, a council committee is set to discuss new regulations governing food trucks in San Diego.

The proposed regulations would essentially ban truck operators from pulling up in San Diego's busiest entertainment areas, such as the Gaslamp, Little Italy, and portions of Pacific Beach, Mission Beach, Ocean Beach, La Jolla, and around San Diego's universities.

Also, service hours would be restricted between the hours of 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. on weekdays, closing at 11p.m. on Friday and Saturday night. Trucks will have to stay 500 feet away from residential units.

Trimming down owners’ access to the public isn't the only potential impact for food truckers. The proposed ordinance requires commercial property owners obtain expensive permits in order to have trucks onsite.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Hoping to alter the ordinance, food-truck owners are calling on their customers to contact councilmembers and urge them to adopt a less-stringent policy.

"These rules are anti-competitive and discriminatory to small-business owners," writes Christian Murcia of Curbside Bites. "There are numerous other drafted rules addressing public safety, such as the size of trucks, encroachment, and [making sure there is] four feet of clearance on sidewalk, so this does nothing to further safety; it is a clear case of economic protectionism. It is unfair to the consumer that the city is protecting special small-interest groups — namely, restaurants, when everyone else wants us in these area. They are choosing to limit the options of consumers. The [interim] mayor has said that he wants to make the city more pedestrian-friendly — this is a great way to encourage pedestrians….”

Murcia and his fellow food-truckers are asking customers to show support at the February 12 meeting. The hearing is one of many obstacles that food-truck owners have run into over the course of the past year.

Things seemed to be on the up and up when former mayor Bob Filner directed the city's code-enforcement unit to refrain from issuing citations against truck owners while the city forged ahead with drafting a formal policy. That changed when [acting mayor Todd Gloria took office][1]. It was then that Gloria announced he planned to increase enforcement on food trucks.

Around the same time, Murcia says the tone in the meetings began to change and more emphasis was given to local business-improvement districts and the restaurant association. This, despite a pledge to pay into the business districts as well as pick up litter and work with the community.

"[The proposed ordinance] is anti-competitive and discriminatory to enforce rules on food trucks that do not apply to other businesses in adjacent areas,” says Murcia. “Consumers are wanting us to be out during these hours because of the lack of food options available. Other rules already regulate concerns related to public safety; this does not do anything to further it. Hours of operation should be regulated by the existing limitations that a zone allows for the surrounds businesses."

In October of last year, food-truck operators posted an [online][2] petition, which reads:

"Unfortunately, since Interim Mayor Todd Gloria took office, the City has decided to turn its back on their previous promise and shut down small businesses run by San Diego locals and minorities who operate food trucks throughout the city. We believe the city needs to be held accountable to their promise and needs to stop trying to destroy an industry that consumers love. Rather, we ask that they support local small business growth in San Diego. We believe consumers have a right to eat the food they love... From gourmet food trucks you've seen on your favorite Food Network shows to your favorite taco truck, we need your support to keep serving local fresh food."

In the four months it has been online, more than 3200 people have pledged their support.

The council committee is set to hear the item on February 12 at 2 p.m.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

The ups and downs of Cel Cerro on a bike

Best outdoors times
Next Article

Timken museum among best in world

Balboa Park is such a pleasant place, it can almost seem a waste to spend time indoors

Next week, February 12, a council committee is set to discuss new regulations governing food trucks in San Diego.

The proposed regulations would essentially ban truck operators from pulling up in San Diego's busiest entertainment areas, such as the Gaslamp, Little Italy, and portions of Pacific Beach, Mission Beach, Ocean Beach, La Jolla, and around San Diego's universities.

Also, service hours would be restricted between the hours of 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. on weekdays, closing at 11p.m. on Friday and Saturday night. Trucks will have to stay 500 feet away from residential units.

Trimming down owners’ access to the public isn't the only potential impact for food truckers. The proposed ordinance requires commercial property owners obtain expensive permits in order to have trucks onsite.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Hoping to alter the ordinance, food-truck owners are calling on their customers to contact councilmembers and urge them to adopt a less-stringent policy.

"These rules are anti-competitive and discriminatory to small-business owners," writes Christian Murcia of Curbside Bites. "There are numerous other drafted rules addressing public safety, such as the size of trucks, encroachment, and [making sure there is] four feet of clearance on sidewalk, so this does nothing to further safety; it is a clear case of economic protectionism. It is unfair to the consumer that the city is protecting special small-interest groups — namely, restaurants, when everyone else wants us in these area. They are choosing to limit the options of consumers. The [interim] mayor has said that he wants to make the city more pedestrian-friendly — this is a great way to encourage pedestrians….”

Murcia and his fellow food-truckers are asking customers to show support at the February 12 meeting. The hearing is one of many obstacles that food-truck owners have run into over the course of the past year.

Things seemed to be on the up and up when former mayor Bob Filner directed the city's code-enforcement unit to refrain from issuing citations against truck owners while the city forged ahead with drafting a formal policy. That changed when [acting mayor Todd Gloria took office][1]. It was then that Gloria announced he planned to increase enforcement on food trucks.

Around the same time, Murcia says the tone in the meetings began to change and more emphasis was given to local business-improvement districts and the restaurant association. This, despite a pledge to pay into the business districts as well as pick up litter and work with the community.

"[The proposed ordinance] is anti-competitive and discriminatory to enforce rules on food trucks that do not apply to other businesses in adjacent areas,” says Murcia. “Consumers are wanting us to be out during these hours because of the lack of food options available. Other rules already regulate concerns related to public safety; this does not do anything to further it. Hours of operation should be regulated by the existing limitations that a zone allows for the surrounds businesses."

In October of last year, food-truck operators posted an [online][2] petition, which reads:

"Unfortunately, since Interim Mayor Todd Gloria took office, the City has decided to turn its back on their previous promise and shut down small businesses run by San Diego locals and minorities who operate food trucks throughout the city. We believe the city needs to be held accountable to their promise and needs to stop trying to destroy an industry that consumers love. Rather, we ask that they support local small business growth in San Diego. We believe consumers have a right to eat the food they love... From gourmet food trucks you've seen on your favorite Food Network shows to your favorite taco truck, we need your support to keep serving local fresh food."

In the four months it has been online, more than 3200 people have pledged their support.

The council committee is set to hear the item on February 12 at 2 p.m.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

When Rafael Payare met with Irwin Jacobs

The new Music Center is a heavenly hall
Next Article

Lost Abbey finds a new way

Best drinking in San Diego
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader