Food trucks may have easier time on private property

Mobile food trucks in Charlottetown may have an easier time getting approval from the city to set up on private property.

A proposed bylaw amendment by the city would extend the same rules for mobile canteens on public land to those operating on private property.

Currently, the city only keeps six public parking areas open for food trucks. Operators who want to set up shop anywhere else, could have their right to open denied.

That happened last year, before the city changed its mind and granted Caron Prin, who runs Charlottetown's Chip Shack, and other vendors permits anyway.

Prins' canteen sits on private land close to the Charlottetown Harbour.

"So overwhelmed and so happy and so pleased that, it's just great," said Prins' boyfriend Peter Williams.

"We think they're very, very good; it levels the playing field out," said Williams.

Every year, Prins and other food truck operators needed to obtain a special variance to be able to run their business on private property.

"She doesn't know what's going to happen," said Williams.

"It's her livelihood. She hires people that are relying on her for jobs in the summer, so it gets very stressful this time of the year when she wants to open, getting ready to open, and never knew if she was going to be able to open."

The head of the city's planning board Coun. Greg Rivard said the changes would eliminate stressful guesswork for individuals like Prins.

"The only thing the people have been crying for, the residents of Charlottetown or the street vendors, is consistency," said Rivard.

"What this does is again by bringing everyone on an even playing field, it's consistent."

The proposed change for mobile canteens will now go back to the planning board for approval.

If the board signs-off on it, council will vote on the issue at its next meeting in two weeks.