Food Truck Request In Hinsdale Sparks Review

HINSDALE, IL – Other towns have regulations for food trucks, but Hinsdale’s code says little about such operations. Apparently, the issue comes up rarely.

For Tuesday’s Village Board meeting, trustees are being asked to approve a Rainbow Cone food truck to operate at The Fruit Store parking lot at 26 W. First St. for five days, from Aug. 18 to Aug. 22.

The request appears to be unusual, especially given that the village's staff drafted a three-page memo about the issue analyzing the legalities and checking what other towns do.

The memo states that downtown has no stand-alone ice cream store, though a couple include ice cream among their offerings. As such, the memo said, the food truck would create no competition for brick-and-mortar businesses.

Under village code, food trucks and mobile food vendors are not specifically identified as permitted temporary uses. So the food truck at The Fruit Store requires the board’s approval, the memo said.

The memo noted mobile food trucks are barred from operating in the village. That’s because of safety concerns with children chasing ice cream trucks. However, the village allows food trucks to sell at village events such as Uniquely Thursday and the Farmers Market, according to the memo.

Food trucks are subject to sales taxes. But the village’s staff said challenges exist to collecting sales taxes from temporary food vendors. As such, the staff plans to review requiring such vendors to pay a flat fee in lieu of sales taxes.

The Village Board meeting is set for 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at Village Hall.