Ferndale Council OKs Street Vendor Ordinance
'We're going to find out if this is too prohibitive and we may have to revisit this again,' Mayor Dave Coulter said of the new vending ordinance.
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Ferndale City Council adopted a new vending ordinance for food trucks and mobile vendors at its meeting Monday night.
On April 23, council debated for more than an hour over an ordinance on street vending in the downtown district.
The Downtown Development Authority had proposed a resolution limiting the days and operation times of local street vendors and setting fees, explaining the proposals as measures to secure downtown businesses. Various street vendors and some members of council expressed that such changes could put street and mobile vendors out of business completely.
Mayor David Coulter and Councilman Dan Martin agreed to serve as a liaison committee of the council to work with the DDA and city administration for two weeks and come back with a recommendation.
Their recommendations, which they presented and were ultimately approved Monday night, include lowering the license fee for sidewalk vending from the previously proposed $250 to $175.
Mobile vending will be allowed Tuesdays only from 8 a.m.-3 a.m. with a license fee of $550 per year. For an additional $100 fee, licensed mobile vendors can apply to operate seven days a week from midnight-3 a.m. in any loading zone approved by the police chief.
Sidewalk vending will now be allowed Thursdays from 8 a.m.-3 a.m. to coincide with the DDA's "Third Thursdays" initiative and Saturdays from 4-11 p.m. for a license fee of $175 per year. Licensed sidewalk vendors may also operate daily from 11 p.m. until 3 a.m. anywhere on city sidewalks in the Central Business District that maintains the minimum clearance distances required by state and federal laws.
Councilman T. Scott Galloway was the only "no" vote, explaining he believes the permitted days should be treated like a special event for the DDA similar to a Woodward Avenue Brewers food truck rally council approved later in the meeting. He said that event involved a more extensive and costly planning process.
"I think we should give everybody the same treatment," he said.
Galloway said council may be getting "too involved in the private market" with the ordinance. "It seems like we've stuck our hands into a big mess and we're sure to upset somebody," he said. "I'm just really dissatisfied with this and I don't think it accomplishes any of the goals as I understood them."
Coulter said he doesn't believe it should be a special event because it will be a regular occurrence. He said the ordinance attempts to "strike a balance" between groups with very different views on the issue and said there seems to be no conclusive data on whether street vendors adversely effect brick and mortar businesses.
"It is admittedly a balance," Coulter said. "We're going to find out if this is too prohibitive and we may have to revisit this again."
WAB Food Truck Rally, other events approved
Council also approved permits for special events including a food truck rally on East Troy Street for Woodward Avenue Brewers on June 23, Aug. 4 and Oct. 6 from 11 a.m.-10 p.m., a permit for Pig and Whiskey on July 13-15 and a special event permit for the Sierra Club's Green Cruise on Aug. 11.
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Ferndale Downtown Development Authority
149 W 9 Mile Rd, Ferndale, MI -
Woodward Avenue Brewers (The WAB)
22646 Woodward Ave, Ferndale, MI
T. Scott Galloway
10:03 am on Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Just to clarify my position and why I voted no. The ordinance does not lay the groundwork for new businesses to locate in Ferndale, instead it creates a weekly special event to complement the activities of the DDA on Thursday. That isn't a bad thing, but the DDA is getting its special event for "free" whereas our business owners have to pay if they want a food truck rally to complement their businesses. I would have much preferred an ordinance that would allow these new businesses to operate 7 days a week in the Ferndale instead of just one day. I am also concerned about the after hours (until 3 a.m.) operations in an area adjacent to a residential neighborhood that in the past has complained about noise from our downtown. I hope that we can learn from our experiences this year and develop a better approach next year.
Don
9:33 am on Wednesday, May 9, 2012
I support you view Mr. Galloway. Seem we are again sending out a message of perferred treatment as out lined by DDA. I think it is wrong. I also think that 3 AM is a little much, to be a cut off of Midnight would be wonderful. I also agree that Mayor and Council got way to involved in this mess. As well, more police protection will be needed to watch over these people, as well as its customers. Just another chance for the criminal element to prey on these vendors; when our police force has already been cut to the bone.
Thank you for your No vote!
Ferndale Resident
11:42 am on Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Hello Mr. Galloway. I'm personally quite happy that you voted No. Although I enjoy the food trucks that have come to town recently (although my scale does not), I'm worried this is going to turn into another Rosie's fiasco. For some time there's been a desire for people to enjoy food late at night, but being open until 3 AM seems a bit ridiculous to me.
What would the procedure be for this ordinance if noise begins to become an issue? As I mentioned above, I don't think we need more noise issues than there already are.
G-Money
11:51 am on Sunday, May 13, 2012
It is turning out that the DDA has become a lobbying group for businesses. Does that mean that residents will soon need their own lobbying group to petition the council so they can also get what they want? How about creating an RDA, Residential Development Authority, to capture all of the additional property taxes from new home property values from here on out? Then, on top of that, their chief can also come before council and ask for stuff on behalf of the residents who are RDA directors.
Also, I asked a similar question in a previous article on this subject, and here it goes again: Why did the city council want the DDA's (read, the restaurants) recommendation on this? Did they think the DDA might actually want competition from outside of its jurisdiction?
Frank Zappa
10:31 am on Monday, May 14, 2012
I guess I just don't get it....Why does someone want to buy food that is prepared in a truck or a sidewalk food cart versus food they can purchase that was prepared in a bonafide kitchen with the option of 'taking it out' to the sidewalk form the food establishment? I realize there is a bit of novelty in buying it from a truck (memories of the michigan State Fair?) and some of the food choices are novel but really, is your life that boring that eating form a food truck is an 'exciting' alternative?
FZAPPA2000
G-Money
1:30 pm on Monday, May 14, 2012
Yeah Zappa, I don't get the novelty of it too much either other than getting something quick to eat when you don't have the time to go into an establishment. Despite that, and the fact that the outsiders don't serve alcohol, the restaurants still feel threatened?
There are other businesses in the downtown other than restaurants you know. It is them that suffer from the restrictions as instead of grabbing a quick bite, shoppers may go home because they are hungry and don't have the time to leisurely visit a bona fide kitchen. That is why IKEA has a cafeteria inside of it: So that hungry shoppers don't go home.