Petition Circling to Ban Food Trucks

Food trucks might have appeared a passing trend when they initially rolled into town, but it appears that they might be here to stay. Not unless The Sandwich Spot owner David Kassouf has something to do about it.

Kassouf met informally with other businesses Thursday night and decided to start a campaign against the incoming food trucks. He said they take business away from his brick and mortar shops while they pay a mere fraction of the rent.

“I’m not going to let this continue,” Kassouf said Friday in a phone interview. “I’m taking responsibility and won’t let it go.”

Food vendors in Redwood City are required to pay a base fee of $37 each fiscal year plus an additional $24 per employee, and metered parking rates. Local businesses, Kassouf said, can pay upwards of $5,000 a month for rent.

Kassouf said he plans to walk to every single restaurant on Broadway and Main streets to speak with owners. So far he said the response has been positive, and most owners have shown support for a petition.

Rose Tran, owner of Sakura Teppanyaki & Sushi, said she would sign the petition once Kassouf stopped by her business. Though she said the food trucks could potentially steer customers away.

“Any new food business is competition,” she said.

Redwood City doesn’t require a minimum number of signatures to present a petition to the city council, according to the city’s Economic Development Director Bill Ekern. Any resident can present a petition, and councilmembers must decide if it’s an issue they’d like to discuss on a public agenda.

The city council would then decide to send the issue to the planning commission, which handles amending of any city ordinances, according to Ekern.

Working Together

Pollo Frito owner Skip Stellhorn said he doesn’t view his food truck as direct competition with local businesses, but as potential partners.

He said one night he parked his truck in front of Willow Market in Menlo Park and brought hundreds of people to the market on an otherwise slow night.

“We go out of our way to play nice,” Stellhorn said. “We don’t park in front of a restaurant. We’re not trying to cause any problems.”

Stellhorn said food trucks were just one part of the increasingly lively and vibrant downtown of Redwood City. He noted the city’s commitment to supporting businesses, whoever they may be.

Because Pollo Frito serves up fried chicken, he said he understood if KFC owners were upset if they parked in front of the shop, but their truck serves up a different type of cuisine.

And when one business is successful, this is contagious.

“All businesses nearby flourish,” Stellhorn said. “It brings an influx of people.”

He suggested that businesses partner with these food trucks. For example, the food trucks could offer $1 coupons off a cookie at Le Boulanger to direct customers to these local businesses, he said.

What Can Redwood City Do at the Moment?

In his experience, Ekern said the issue of a temporary business coming in and competing against the institutionalized businesses is common. But he sees food trucks as a fad.

“They’re chic at the moment, with people following them on Twitter and liking your favorite truck,” he said. “But with this guerilla marketing, they’re unpredictable and tough to compete with.”

As the economic development director, Ekern is responsible for maintaining and increasing the city’s economic vitality. Looking purely at the city’s tax base, the brick and mortar businesses contribute much more than the mobile vendors. He said he was worried for businesses, and, from the government side, and is trying to bolster restaurants’ best practices.

He has been working with businesses’ marketing campaigns to ensure that they still offer unique services that a mobile vendor cannot.

“You have to have some personal service here rather than making your customer look like a vagrant on the street munching on your taco,” he said.

Ironically though, Ekern noted, food trucks tend to come into areas where the markets are doing well. So the restaurant market may not be as glum as initially described.

But with no timeline for the petition and the increasing popularity of the meals on wheels, Ekern said there was little the city could legally do at the moment.

“Hopefully, they’ll eventually decide to rent space, join us and join the party,” he said.

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