Officials advance food truck rules

FAYETTEVILLE — The city’s planning staff, rather than the Planning Commission, could soon handle permits for mobile vendors.

The commission voted 8-0 to relax some standards for mobile vendors. The recommendation will go to the City Council for approval. A 2014 amendment to the city’s Outdoor Mobile Vendor code allowed food trucks and courts to operate on streets and in parks.

The changes commissioners approved Monday include doing away with the lottery system used to select vendors, letting staff approve permits and allowing vendors to renew permits annually.

Alderman Matthew Petty and Planning Director Andrew Garner presented the changes. The commission tabled the issue March 13 to have sections added to address pedestrian safety and expand the hours for vendors’ limited time permits.

The lottery system was meant to offset potential issues with food trucks taking up too many parking spaces downtown. The system allowed up to three trucks to take public parking spaces. Mobile vendors taking up spaces hasn’t been an issue so the lottery system isn’t necessary, according to the proposal.

Anyone who wants to develop a mobile vendor court or sidewalk cafe has to apply for a permit, which the Planning Commission reviews. The proposed change allows the city’s planning staff to sign off on those proposals. Only one such permit, Shulertown on Dickson Street, has come before the commission.

The commission also approves permits allowing vendors to operate for a year. The commission has approved 19 over three years mostly on its consent agenda. The proposal allows vendors to simply renew their permits annually like a business license.

Garner and Petty added a provision to make it so vendors would have to put temporary material, such as potted plants, along continuous curb cuts to keep cars from moving in and out at different spots along food truck courts. Another change would increase the time limits from four hours to 12 hours.

Commissioner Matt Hoffman supported the changes but asked planning staff to

keep in mind pedestrian safety when considering permits for mobile vendors.

In other business, the commission voted 8-0 to recommend rezoning 9-acres in the 1800 block of Poplar Street, the site of a mobile home park. The commission decided a community services zoning would allow some nonresidential development in an area that could use it. The applicants originally requested zoning for up to 40 residential units per acre.

The site is zoned for up to 24 residential units per acre. Residents of the mobile home park spoke before the commission, stressing they couldn’t afford to move if development pushes them out.

Tait Coates, who said he represented the potential future owners of the property, said the developers would

maintain an open dialogue with tenants during their considerations.

Hoffman made the motion to recommend approval of the rezoning, but added a request for the City Council to address displacement at the site and other areas. City Attorney Kit Williams said the city is limited in what it can do to prevent displacement, especially if a landlord is leasing to tenants on a short-term basis.

About 20 residents commented for about two hours during a separate rezoning proposal for a property at Crossover Road and Hearthstone

Drive. Residents repeatedly addressed concerns over traffic, noise, odors and property value issues because of the zoning.

Developer Blake Jorgensen said the request to rezone the property from residential office to community services was so a pizzeria and drivethrough coffee place could be built. The commission voted unanimously to table the item so Jorgensen could discuss with staff proposing a different zoning type.

The commission also elected Ron Autry as chairman, Hoffman as vice chairman and Alli Quinlan as treasurer. It was the final meeting for Janet Selby, Tracy Hoskins and Kyle Cook.