Say hello to more street food in the neighborhood. Last week the Seattle City Council approved a new measure opening up city streets to food trucks, voting for the bill on Monday. Currently street vendors have to make arrangements with the owners of private lots to park and sell goods on their land. The new bill will allow the city’s food trucks to park and operate on public streets. From The Seattle Times:
Trucks will not be allowed in residential neighborhoods, near high schools or within 50 feet of an existing food business. Some restaurant owners had expressed concern about competition from the trucks, which can do business more cheaply, in part, because they don’t pay rent or property taxes.
Food truck owners will be required to pay the city a fee in the amount of $2.25 an hour (in four-hour time slots), or $9 a day, to park and operate on its streets. In the event that more than one vendor applies to park at the same location and time, the city says it is planning to use a lottery system to determine which vendor wins the spot.