Common Council to vote on lifting Capitol Dr. food truck ban

 

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Food trucks might soon be allowed again on one of the city's busiest streets. The Common Council will vote Tuesday on an ordinance creating a new vehicle peddler zone on Capitol Drive between N. 76th Street and Mayfair Road.

Food trucks have been off limit in the area since March 16. Ald. Lamont Westmoreland, who represents the area, said he had three reasons for supporting the ban: a desire to protect brick and mortar restaurants, cracking down on litter and improving visibility for drivers turning onto Capitol Dr.

Quinyniss Pruitt operates the Roll 'N Waffles food truck. On Monday, the truck was set up on W. Appleton Ave., just south of Capitol Dr. Before the ban, Pruitt said the truck would frequently set up at intersection of 76th St. and Capitol Dr.

"I didn't like it, but I understood why," Pruitt said of the ban. "We had some close calls being on Capitol with the driving."

Westmoreland said he was working with the city's licensing and parking enforcement divisions to finalize the rules for the zone, but the alderman said he envisioned confining the area to eight or nine designated spots.

The Common Council's public safety and health committee unanimously passed the ordinance on March 28. Food trucks have already been banned on Capitol Dr. between N. 51st and N. 76th streets. 

The city will determine the location of those spots with the goal of avoiding any blind spots for turning drivers and keeping food trucks from setting up in front of restaurants.

"They should want visibility, but you have to be safe about it," Westmoreland said.

Westmoreland said his goal was for the food truck zone to become active by June 15. He said operators would be able to apply for an annual license giving them access to one of the designated parking spots, and if applicants outnumber spots, the city would have a lottery to determine who gets licensed.

In addition to safety, Westmoreland said assigning dedicated spots to operators would make it easier for the city to track down operators causing problems.

"If there is an uptick in litter, if there is garbage left behind, if there is a grease spillage, the person will have to register to be in that slot, so we'll know exactly who to hold responsible for that," he said.

Pruitt said she was torn on whether to apply for one of the spots on Capitol Dr. On one hand, Roll 'N Waffles would be exposed to more traffic, but on the other, she wasn't a big fan of fast-moving traffic zooming past her business.

"It's a lot of visibility right there, but I don't know if that's gonna change the traffic and how people are driving," she said. "So, slow down."

The issue of food truck safety on Capitol Dr. has been front and center since a drunk driver in February obliterated Andre Richards' food truck at the intersection of Capitol Dr. and N. Holton St.

Westmoreland said reckless driving concerns did not prompt the Capitol Dr. food truck ban, but he added that if the new ordinance made the road safer, that would be an added benefit.

"This is all about structure and organization," he said.