On Wednesday, August 18 the Greenbelt City Council met in a worksession to discuss the possibility of hosting food trucks in Greenbelt. Economic Development Coordinator Charise Liggins has suggested the city determine the viability of a food truck program as part of a city economic business recovery program.
County Regulations
Director of Planning and Community Development Terri Hruby explained that food trucks are very heavily regulated in Prince George’s County. In general, food trucks must operate as part of a Food Truck Hub with at least two licensed vendors, a designated food hub coordinator and an approved food truck hub license from the Department of Permitting Inspections and Enforcement (DPIE).
Food Truck Hubs may only be located in the open area or parking lot or public rights-of-way of Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission parks or recreation facilities under the control of that agency or within one-quarter mile of a Metro or MARC station. While the county authorizes up to 12 hubs, most had let their licenses lapse during the pandemic, including the one at Capital Office Park.
In 2019, the county council passed a bill that created an additional option: municipalities are now authorized to establish Food Truck Hubs within their jurisdiction on city property. They must, however, follow all other county regulations, including getting a Food Truck Hub license for each location, only allowing licensed food truck operators to participate and having a designated hub coordinator. The city does not have the authority to waive county food truck regulations such as by allowing individual vendors to operate on city property/rights of way without being associated with a city-sponsored special event. It may not authorize food trucks on private property or rights-of-way. Municipalities can charge vendors up to $75 per event.
One other option open to city property owners is to host a temporary Food Truck Hub in conjunction with a carnival, fair or similar event which has been issued a temporary use permit from DPIE and complies with all county regulations. Greenbelt Station recently held such an event and the Labor Day Festival is planning to do so as well.
Local Experiences
Linda Ivy, president of the Labor Day Festival Committee board of directors; Kristen Weaver, chair of the Greenbelt Station Activity Committee, who arranged for the food truck event there; and Charles Jackson, a Greenbelt resident and licensed food truck vendor who operates Good to Da Bone BBQ, shared their experiences.
Weaver said that the process is fairly complicated but the paperwork is doable. The hardest part, she reported, was figuring out what she needed to submit and navigating the DPIE process. She noted that it costs $160 for the DPIE permit fee and $120 for the inspection by the fire marshal. There also must be a health inspection. Her experience this year did not discourage the committee, which plans to host a similar event next summer.
Jackson, who participated in the Greenbelt Station event, said he has gotten many calls from Greenbelt residents asking when he is coming back to Greenbelt. Ivy noted that he will be at the Labor Day Festival.
Council
All of the councilmembers who spoke at the worksession were open to food trucks. Councilmember Emmett Jordan was not present and Councilmember Edward Putens was on the Zoom meeting, but did not express an opinion. Councilmember Rodney Roberts said that the county regulations are denying people the ability to make a living and property owners from hosting a food truck to draw in business. He said the city should try to get the county regulations changed. No other county regulates food trucks so stringently, he said. Several councilmembers including Mayor Colin Byrd and Judith Davis supported this suggestion.
Resources
Davis asked whether the Departments of Planning and Community Development and Recreation had the staff available to oversee the event. Hruby said they could probably handle a one-time event. Recreation Director Greg Varda said he would need to investigate this issue and that the police should be involved. Jackson noted that he operates his truck in many locations and has never seen a police presence. Varda noted that Anne Arundel County hosted an event at Kinder Farm Park, which has a larger parking lot than Schrom Hills Park, but had to shut it down due to overflow crowds. Weaver noted that, at the Greenbelt Station event, police helped direct traffic and took part in the community event but were not otherwise involved.
Davis suggested that Hruby, Varda and Liggins think of ideas for a Greenbelt event. While supporting the idea of a city event, she urged consideration of possible impacts on city businesses, city organizations’ fundraising efforts and resident access to convenient parking.
Weaver suggested that the city could help guide organizations interested in hosting a food truck event through the approval process.
