Food truck owners score small victory toward looser street food rules

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Toronto food truck owners are reacting with "guarded optimism" after city hall moved again toward loosening street food rules.

Last year, city council adopted sweeping reforms to allow roaming food trucks on city streets for the first time, but food truck owners argued that the rules – in particular, a ban on operating within 50 metres of a restaurant – were too restrictive. On Tuesday, the city's licensing committee voted to reduce that distance to 30 metres. The decision needs to be approved at council.

"I don't love it, but I think my members can live with it. It's progress," said restaurant and food truck owner Zane Caplansky, who represents the Toronto Food Truck Alliance. Mr. Caplansky and other owners had argued for the limit to be reduced to 15 metres.

But after last year, when council reversed key components of the licensing committee's food truck policy, he said he will wait before celebrating.

"I'm not sure if it's a light at the end of the tunnel or an oncoming train," he said. "Until it's done, until we have this signed, sealed, delivered, I won't believe it."

Randy Kangal, the owner of Randy's Roti, who was the first in line to buy the $5,000 curbside vending permit created out of last year's city council decision, argued in committee that he "almost lost my shirt" as a result of the rules. Only 17 vendors in total bought the new city permit.

"The name of the game is finding a location," Mr. Kangal said, adding that only a few spots in the downtown core fall within the 50-metre requirement. With a 30-metre rule, he said, he can think of a few spots that would open up for him– including near Ryerson University and the University of Toronto.

When asked about the decision on Tuesday, Mayor John Tory – who has spoken in support of food trucks in the past – said he would have been in favour of reducing the limit to 25 metres.

"I just want to see a healthy – I will call it liberalized – food truck industry. Liberalized in a sense that we are not, as a government, trying to stand in their way, but rather get the kind of healthy, vibrant food truck industry we've seen in other municipalities," he said.

City staff have argued in the past that the 50-metre rule is already a compromise between food truck owners, who wanted no distance limit, and restaurant owners, who wanted 250 metres. Cities across North America have distance requirements ranging from 15 metres (Seattle) to 90 metres (Boston – which also has designated food truck sites).

At Tuesday's meeting, representatives of neighbourhood BIAs and the restaurant business spoke in favour of maintaining the 50-metre rule.

BIA officials, in particular, voiced concerns that food trucks would block access and sight lines to nearby businesses. Robert Sysak of the West Queen West BIA argued that food trucks would "destroy" businesses in the area, and said his members are "calling me crying."

Meanwhile, Tony Elenis, president of the Ontario Restaurant Hotel and Motel Association, said the 50-metre rule is necessary to protect restaurants.

"Restaurants work very hard. It is a very tough business to make dollars in and be sustainable. Especially today," he said. "Toronto is very dense. That 50 metres made sense to Toronto as a win-win for all."

The food truck decision was made during a raucous meeting of the city's licensing committee, which also included a heated debate over taxi licensing.

After hours of discussion, the committee decided to overturn key parts of reforms made to the city's taxi-licensing system last year. That decision will also return to council for another debate.

Mayor Tory said he would like the taxi issue to be discussed in a broader context.

"I think that there needs to be a wake-up call for the taxi industry as a whole," he said. "I think that includes improvements in the quality of service they offer to Torontonians. I think also we obviously have to take into account what we're going to do vis-à-vis Uber."