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City of Atlanta recently announced plans to expand publicly designated locations for food trucks to operate within more commercial districts around town.
Food trucks in Atlanta have a number of rules and regulations to follow in order to legally operate publicly within the city limits, including vending in a metered parking space on public property, obtaining permits to sell food in city parks, and, if not hired by a private company or individual, operating from designated areas in downtown Atlanta.
According to a press release, the updated food truck program expands these publicly designated areas beyond the boundaries of downtown and allows operators to apply for the establishment of new designated locations in existing on-street parking spaces within other commercial districts in the city.
Managed by the Department of City Planning, applications for proposed food truck areas meeting the required criteria can include letters of support from local businesses and property owners and must undergo review and public comment by the Neighborhood Planning Unit (NPU) before final approval. Once approved, signs are then posted indicating the days and times food trucks are allowed to operate within a newly designated area.
“The addition of new designated food truck areas will enhance streets and pedestrian ways, increase economic opportunity for entrepreneurs and provide more choices in underserved neighborhoods with few prepared food options,” Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms says in a prepared statement.
Last fall, the Atlanta City Council passed a resolution to create a roving “food truck village.” According to city council Resolution 20-R-4315, the food truck village would periodically travel to various established locations throughout Atlanta “monthly, bimonthly, or trimonthly.” Similar to Austin’s food truck parks and the food cart pods found throughout Portland, Oregon, the Atlanta food truck village would provide owners and operators with expanded licenses and public vending right-of-way options within the city.
Only two permanent, privately owned food truck parks operate in the city. The Atlanta Food Truck Park, located in a small lot on Howell Mill Road, features a rotating roster of trucks serving vegan and vegetarian fare. Triton Yards, a small food truck and tiny home park in the Capitol View neighborhood, includes a covered patio area and hosts weekly neighborhood movie nights and shows sports on its two projector screens.
