ORLANDO, Fla. – The city of Orlando is looking to regulate food trucks in Downtown Orlando with a two-year pilot program allowing trucks to park at one location, once a week.
The trucks will need to get a temporary use permit for $50, according to the program that was approved on May 20. The city said it wanted to created a balance with the food trucks and the local restaurants.
[READ: Food truck map downtown]
"These food trucks come in, make a little business and leave, and they take away from the downtown crowd and the people that are here every night and trying to make it and trying to do it," said Dustin Mather, manager of Gringos Locos.
Food truck owners like Melisa's Chicken and Waffles say they don't believe there's competition for cheap eats.
"I don't feel like there's really any competition I'm only out here for 3 hours, I mean 3 hours shouldn't have that big of an effect on anyone's business," said Rovel Hamilton of Melissa's Chicken and Waffles.
Orlando City Code still also allows for mobile food vending in conjunction with an 18A special event permit or by obtaining a conditional use permit, according to city officials. The mobile food business can operate on private property on a permanent basis, with a CUP.
Otherwise, the trucks must adhere to the once a week rules in the specific locations outlined by the city map.
The city says they are using the program to figure out exactly what the final rules will be.