Round Rock gives initial OK to food trucks

They’re seen as accessories to existing businesses.

The Round Rock City Council approved an ordinance last week that will allow food trucks and trailers in the city as accessories to existing facilities. A required second reading of the ordinance will take place Thursday.

“The purpose of this ordinance tonight is to provide limited food service operations to support certain types of businesses in certain locations in the city,” Brad Wiseman, planning and development services director, said at the Aug. 27 meeting.

Wiseman said that a few years ago a pilot program of a food trailer park was conducted on North Mays Street, but the community expressed concerns about the appearance of the trailer park.

“What this ordinance does not do is facilitate food trailer parks or food trailers to be set up on vacant lots or in parking lots of various shopping centers,” he said.

According to the ordinance, food trucks are intended to serve as an accessory use and support to an existing business.

Food trucks will be allowed to set up next to a bar or restaurant for a limited amount of time, Wiseman said.

Food trailers will also be allowed to station themselves in shopping centers with interior pedestrian promenades, such as the Round Rock Premium Outlets, he said.

Microbreweries in the city may also be allowed to locate a food trailer next to their business, he said.

Food trucks will now also be able to park next to event centers, city parks and recreational facilities, higher education facilities and corporate office campuses like Dell Inc., Wiseman said.

The food trucks must remain temporary and new connections to city water or wastewater are prohibited, he said. Electricity for the trailers would have to be obtained through a generator.

Trucks or trailers would not be allowed to stay on the site except on weekends or holidays, Wiseman said.

“However, if (the trucks) are not visible from a public street, as would be the case with the Round Rock Premium Outlets, they are permitted to remain on site at the owner’s pleasure,” Wiseman said.

Food trucks are not allowed on public streets or in public parking lots, he said.

They also cannot be parked within 50 feet of a single-family home or on sidewalks unless approved by the city.

Food trucks also will be required to be maintained well by their owners, he said.