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Is there a specific (potentially country-specific) background to this? For me as a (pre-2020) office worker, food trucks setting up near my old office seemed l

Is there a specific (potentially country-specific) background to this? For me as a (pre-2020) office worker, food trucks setting up near my old office seemed like a win-win-win: * the food truck operators make profit * the students and employees around the area had more variety in food available * I reckon the employees took shorter lunch breaks because they didn't have to travel further for the same variety/quality of food (I'm not even sure if the food trucks were charged rent, or encouraged to show up by the local business/college. I would describe the space they used as 'semi-public', think 'the middle of a plaza between 5 buildings')

mindslight 4y ago
The ones you describe could have been fixed structures instead, say first floor commercial of taller office buildings. There just needs to be a desire to create mixed use walkable areas, rather than the tendency towards single use sprawl (eg the concept of an "office park"). I do see some advantage if a single truck can serve offices for weekday lunch, public parks for evenings, and special events when they exist. And not having to commit one's startup capital to a single fixed location. Such food trucks have always existed. It just feels like food trucks really became a popular trend in response to the lack of good restaurant options. For instance in the OP, they're talking about food trucks at a beach. Those could also be fixed stands, who would then supply appropriate number of trash cans, garbage removal, etc. Instead those details have punted to the public commons, in a not particularly sustainable way. It's not particularly imaginative of city officials to prohibit them rather than making them fund appropriate trash cans etc, but it is a predictable result of reactionary politics.
- xyzzy123 4y ago
  > And not having to commit one's startup capital to a single fixed location. Ultimately I suspect it's about the renter-rentee relationship. Property owners and existing fixed businesses aren't very keen on mobile competition that doesn't have to pay continuous ground rent.

mindslight 4y ago

The ones you describe could have been fixed structures instead, say first floor commercial of taller office buildings. There just needs to be a desire to create mixed use walkable areas, rather than the tendency towards single use sprawl (eg the concept of an "office park"). I do see some advantage if a single truck can serve offices for weekday lunch, public parks for evenings, and special events when they exist. And not having to commit one's startup capital to a single fixed location. Such food trucks have always existed. It just feels like food trucks really became a popular trend in response to the lack of good restaurant options. For instance in the OP, they're talking about food trucks at a beach. Those could also be fixed stands, who would then supply appropriate number of trash cans, garbage removal, etc. Instead those details have punted to the public commons, in a not particularly sustainable way. It's not particularly imaginative of city officials to prohibit them rather than making them fund appropriate trash cans etc, but it is a predictable result of reactionary politics.

xyzzy123 4y ago
> And not having to commit one's startup capital to a single fixed location. Ultimately I suspect it's about the renter-rentee relationship. Property owners and existing fixed businesses aren't very keen on mobile competition that doesn't have to pay continuous ground rent.