Workable street food ordinance may emerge from awkward start

New Albany, MS – City department heads are working on an ordinance that could make “street food” more available in New Albany.

New Albany City Attorney Regan Russell told NEMISS.NEWS that the ordinance offered to the Board of Aldermen at its June 2 meeting is “obsolete,” a form not appropriate to current needs.

Attorney Russell said he and other city department heads are developing an all new ordinance that will be shorter, simpler and less restrictive than the nine-page, 3,000-word “mobile food vendors” ordinance that was originally written about three years ago and formally offered to the aldermen at their June meeting.

Public reaction to the ordinance offered at the June 2 board meeting was overwhelmingly negative. A June 5^th NEMISS.NEWS story about the ordinance drew close to 5,000 readers, most of them from New Albany, which now has a population of 8,800.

Much of the controversy was conducted on social media, specifically Facebook. One or more city employees were active participants in the Facebook ruckus.

The City of New Albany has a policy about the use of social media by city employees, which is rather specific as to what is and is not allowed.

This, like everything that comes before the city board, is, after all, a political issue, which is as it should be. It is a political system. The fact that city officials are taking an entirely new look at the matter of how street food will be regulated is proof that the system works. The people speak, and their elected and appointive officials listen.

The net result for people who live in and visit New Albany, especially for those who enjoy a variety of food, may turn out to be a good thing.

Alderman-at-Large Keith Conlee, Ward 2 Alderman Johnny Anderson, and Ward 4 Alderman Will Tucker have all told NEMISS.NEWS they did not attend the June 2 meeting expecting to vote on a mobile food vendor ordinance. Ward 1 Alderwoman Amy Livingston and Ward 3 Alderman Kevin Dale White did not attend the June 2 meeting.

A new street food ordinance may not be available in time to be offered at the July board meeting. Those interested should contact their aldermen regarding what should and should not be in the new ordinance.

The balance of this long article consists of two parts:

• (A)  A verbatim transcript of what was said by various city officials during the June 2 meeting.
• (B)  A complete PDF copy of the Mobile Food Vendor’s ordinance that was offered to the board two weeks ago. The items in red type are the revisions and additions to the ordinance which were made by city employees before it was presented to the board June 5^th.  Mayor Tim Kent and Code Enforcement Officer Eric Thomas have told NEMISS.NEWS that those changes, which appear in red type on what was submitted to the aldermen, were mostly made by Thomas and Community Development Director Billye Jean Stroud.

Transcript of street food ordinance discussion at Board of Aldermen meeting

Transcript of food truck discussion: New Albany city board June 2. Transcribed by J. Lynn West and Jerry Shiverdecker from two different audio recordings of the June 2, 2020, meeting of the New Albany Board of Aldermen. [First Ward Alderwoman, Amy Livingston, and Third Ward Alderman, Kevin Dale White, were not present.]

The first mention of a food truck ordinance at the June 2, 2020, meeting of the New Albany, Mississippi Board of Aldermen was by Community Development Director Billye Jean Stroud, during her regular time on the published agenda.

The discussion thus began:

Community Development Director, Billye Jean Stroud: “We have worked on an ordinance for food trucks. Uh. It’s beginning to pick up, people doing food things out of their house, on the side of the road and stuff, and so we have created a food ordinance and I’ve emailed that to you, as well, and would like…”

New Albany Mayor, Tim Kent: “It’s on the next.”

Billye Jean Stroud: “Oh, is it on the next one? Well. Then that’s it.”

…..discussion unrelated to food truck business regarding: city beautification…street paving overlay…approval of tennis professional contract…federal funding regarding COVID-19.

Mayor Kent: “Uh, food truck ordinance, chapter 22. Regan, [to Attorney Russell] do you want to say anything about that?”

New Albany City Attorney, Regan Russell:  “Yeah, we drafted, I think back in ‘18, 2018, and believe, if I can check the minutes, it was tabled. So I sent out an email that, based on the fact it had already been offered, I thought we could vote to approve it today.”

Mayor Kent: “Okay.”

Attorney Russell: “I looked up the tabling and [unintelligible] since that expired, I think it has, I think there’s a time limit on [unintelligible] bringing something up. So I think we just need to offer it to today.Vote on it at the next meeting. If they want to approve it.”

Mayor Kent: “They can offer it without approving it, can’t they?”

Attorney Russell: “They can just offer it in writing, so we can take it up after 14 days.”

Mayor Kent:  “Okay.”

Attorney Russell: “Yeah. We’re basically starting over.”

Mayor Kent: “We’ve already got one written now?”

Attorney Russell: “It’s the same one we had, with about three changes to it.”

Mayor Kent: “All right. I need a motion to offer it.”

Alderman-At-Large Clint Conlee: “So, I have a question. Are we approving? Are we offering up to allow food trucks? Are we approving if we do allow food trucks, this is the guidelines that they will follow?”

Attorney Russell: “Uh, we’re offering it today for later consideration, so there’s no approval of anything today. And it does allow food trucks, but it puts restrictions on them, too. Whoever offers it, it doesn’t really require a vote to offer it. It’s just offered in writing so you can see it and the public can see it, and, if then you have questions about it, we can revisit it as you want to. But it does allow food trucks, but it has, like I say, have a lot of restrictions on it.”

Mayor Kent: “But it has to, I mean. The number one: whoever’s property it’s on has to give permission up front.”

Attorney Russell: “Yes, that’s a requirement.”

New Albany Code Enforcement Officer Eric Thomas: “We had one operating in a neighborhood up here. That’s kind of what brought that back up, and I actually saw on his Facebook post that he was trying to get a petition together to make it legal to operate in residential areas.”

Mayor Kent: “Okay, are y’all okay with offering it up to be voted on later – that ordinance that you’ve got in front of you?”

Second Ward Alderman, Johnny Anderson: [to Deputy Fire Chief Mark Whiteside] “Mark, are you aware that you have to inspect that?”

Deputy Chief Whiteside: “We don’t. We require the basics, which is like a fire extinguisher and stuff like that, but once they get their permit, we’re good.”

Attorney Russell: “There was, you know, that previous incident where he had one catch fire and [Fire Chief] Steve [Coker] didn’t like how that one was set up, so a bunch of extension cords, things like that. He wanted the right way before they were permitted.”

Alderman Anderson: “So are y’all ready to inspect them? Cause says in here that you will begin inspecting.”

Deputy Fire Chief Whiteside: “I think that’s what said, it gives us the option to. I’d have to read and double check. It’s been so long now. I think it gives us the option, if we feel like we need to, because, like I said, we did have one to catch on fire. They had a bunch of extension cords. They had a tarp over the barbecue grill itself that caught on fire. Stuff like that. It just gives us the option.”

Alderman Anderson: “It says ‘shall’ inspect.”

Deputy Chief Whiteside: “OK, if it says ‘shall,’ then we will.”

Alderman Anderson: ‘It says ‘shall’. ”

Deputy Chief Whiteside: “If it says ‘shall,’ then that’s what we will do.”

Alderman Anderson: “Okay.”

Deputy Chief Whiteside: “I’d have to go back to read it 100 percent, like I said, it’s been so long time, but ‘shall’ says ‘shall,’ that’s what we will do.”

Mayor Kent: “All right, we’ll offer that up.”

Attorney Russell: “You just need one person to offer.”

Mayor Kent: “Does anybody want to offer it?”

Alderman Anderson: “I would [unintelligible].”

Thus the “food truck” ordinance, as submitted to the city and as published in its entirety below, was “offered up” to the New Albany Board of Aldermen for consideration at its July meeting, or at any other future time.

Here is the complete text of the Mobile Food Vendors ordinance offered June 2, 2020:   Food truck ord of June 2 2020

NEMiss.news story on city’s regulation of “food trucks” http://newalbanyunionco.com/na-to-regulate-food-trucks/