Memorandum

City of Lawrence

Planning Department

TO:	David L. Corliss, City Manager
FROM:	Planning Staff
DATE:	September 15, 2014
RE:	Revised Ordinance No. 9026 amending Chapter 6, Article 17 of the City Code to remove the time restriction and the limit on the number for Mobile Food Vendors that can be on a site when located on properties that have been site planned for a Mobile Food Vendor use.

Attachments:

A: Revised Ordinance 9026. New text is underlined and deleted text is ~~struckthrough~~.

B: Responses to Mobile Food Vending Questionnaire

Discussion:

The City Commission considered Ordinance No. 9026 at their August 19, 2014 meeting and returned it to staff with direction for the development of standards for the mobile food vending units that are permitted when included on a City approved site plan.

The concerns noted by the Commission are listed below, with staff’s discussion following in red:

1) Duration of placement. The mobile food unit may become inoperable if it remains in one place for long periods of time.

The following standard has been added to the ordinance:

“All Mobile Food Units shall be maintained in good, operable condition and shall, at all times, be capable of being moved.” This will allow staff the ability to require vendors to demonstrate compliance with this standard by moving the unit if requested.

2) Appearance. Some standards should be applied to the appearance of the mobile food vending unit when site planned.

The following standard has been added to the ordinance:

“The exterior of all Mobile Food Units shall be maintained in good repair, shall be sound, shall be free from peeling or flaking paint, and shall be clean and sanitary so as not to pose a threat to the public health, safety, and welfare.”

3) Energy use. Adequate energy hook-ups should be provided to insure safety.

The following standard has been added to the ordinance:

“All Mobile Food Units, unless completely self-contained, shall be located in close proximity to and shall be connected safely to electricity and other necessary utilities, such that they do not pose a threat to the public health, safety, and welfare.”

4) Trash removal.

This will be addressed through the review of the site plan with the Development Code.

· Section 20-1305(f)(xviii): “Designate a trash storage site on each site plan appropriate for the number of occupants proposed. The size of the trash storage receptacle, its location and an elevation of the enclosure shall be approved by the Director of Public Works prior to approval of the site plan.”

5) Parking. The parking should be reviewed to insure there is adequate parking for the current use and the proposed mobile food vending unit.

This will be addressed through the review of the site plan with the Development Code. Adequate parking for all uses on the site must be provided when site planning Mobile Food Units.

· Section 20-907(a): “Unless otherwise approved, lots containing more than one use shall provide parking and loading in an amount equal to the total of the requirements of all uses. (See the shared parking provisions of Section 20-909 for possible exceptions.)”

6) Sanitation. Certification of the units to insure they follow correct food handling procedures.

Per Section 6-1705 of the City Code, an application for a City Mobile Food Vendor License must include a copy of a valid State Food Service Establishment License.

The Kansas Department of Agriculture/Food Safety and Lodging provided the following information on inspections of Mobile Food Units:

· Frequency. Mobile Food Units are typically inspected once a year. Low-risk units such as sno-cone or popcorn vendors may be inspected every 15 to 18 months.

· Location. The inspector visits the unit so they can inspect it while it is in operation and the inspection is unannounced.

· Type of inspection. The inspections for a Mobile Food Unit and a permanent restaurant are the same.

7) Competition with existing restaurants. Perhaps require a minimum separation, for instance prohibit location within 500 ft of a similar type restaurant. Or require them to obtain permission from nearby businesses. (Some of the commissioners did not feel that the mobile food vendors would be competition for the existing restaurants as they would be serving different clientele.)

From a land-use and legal standpoint, there must be some connection between the regulations and the public health, safety, and welfare. Staff considered several options to address this concern, but concluded that the use should not be regulated from a competition standpoint.

Per the proposed ordinance, the location of more than 2 Mobile Food Units on a site is permitted only when a site plan has been approved by the City establishing the Mobile Food Units as permanent or seasonal element of the site. A site plan is processed administratively following notification of all property owners within 200 ft of the subject property and the neighborhood association. The property owners and neighborhood association can provide input throughout the review and have the ability to appeal the administrative decision to the City Commission.

If the Commission determines further safeguards are necessary, the Development Code could be amended to allow more than 2 Mobile Food Units on a site only with approval of a Special Use Permit. A Special Use Permit requires a public hearing before the Planning Commission and City Commission approval, as well as the publication of a SUP Ordinance.

Following the City Commission meeting, Commissioner Riordan requested more information on where Mobile Food Units are permitted.

The following locational restrictions are provided in Section 6-1711 of the City Code,

Mobile Food Vendors may only operate on improved surfaces in the commercial, industrial, and nonresidential special purpose zoning districts.

--Per the proposed amendment, Mobile Food Units that are site planned and exempt from the 3 hour time limitation are permitted only in the Zoning Districts that allow the Fast Order Food use.

Mobile Food Vendors are prohibited from operating from the right-of-way (except as part of City approved event).
Mobile Food Vendors are prohibited from operating from any unoccupied or vacant lot (except as part of City approved event).

--The proposed amendment revises this restriction to allow unoccupied or vacant lots to be used by Mobile Food Vendors when site planned.

OTHER COMMUNITIES:

Additionally, Commissioner Riordan provided staff with a list of questions regarding other communities’ regulations and experiences with Mobile Food Units. Staff distributed the questions to 20 cities which have Mobile Food regulations and received responses from 4 cities. The responses were varied and did not provide clear guidance for development of standards; therefore, no revisions were made based on the result of the questionnaire. The responses are included with this memo as Attachment B.

Summary

The draft ordinance has been revised to address issues which were raised by the Commissioners as noted in this memo.

Requested Action: Approve Ordinance 9026, as revised.

If the Commission determines that more than 2 Mobile Food Units on a site should require additional process and review, a text amendment to the Development Code could be initiated to permit more than 2 Mobile Food Units on a site only when approved as a Special Use.