If the southwest Vancouver Island community of Sooke is on your summer calendar, a pilot project allowing food trucks in five Sooke parks will offer some tasty options.
Sooke district council will allow food trucks to offer their fare at Whiffin Spit, Ed Macgregor, John Phillips Memorial, Broomhill Playground and Sooke Potholes parks.
A lottery system will determine which business is permitted to work in each park.
The trucks will rotate weekly, permitting each food service to work in each park, and determine the hours and days of the week they choose to work. The food truck must close by sunset.
“A food truck parked in the vicinity may keep people in the park, rather than them going home to cook,” said Medea Mills, the district’s business license inspector.
“Once residents are aware that food options will be in select parks, they may deliberately attend the park so they can picnic with food purchased at the park.”
Several operators have been pushing the district to cut the red tape surrounding food trucks, which are restricted to selling food in private parking lots and at events.
The majority of the council praised the pilot project decision, but councillors Al Beddows and questioned the effects on established restaurant businesses.
“If there’s a lot of push back from restaurants that pay a lot of taxes, then we can revisit it. It’s worth a try,” Beddows said.
Food truck operators who decide to work in parks will be required to pay a $300 damage deposit, have a garbage can large enough to collect refuse and clean up the area at the end of the day.
“Food trucks are all the rage, and I’m excited about the possibility,” Bateman said.
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