With all the problems food trucks have been experiencing with police ticketing and being closed down, I got in touch with David Weber of the NYC Food Truck Association to discuss the issues currently being faced by NYC food trucks.
As I mentioned last week, the Paty’s Taco Truck case set a legal precedent where trucks could not sell “merchandise” from trucks parked at meters. Whether food is actually “merchandise” (especially after being prepared to the customer’s request) is open to interpretation, and the Street Vendor Project is appealing the verdict.
But the wheels of justice turn very slowly, and waiting for a potential verdict to be overturned is not a sound basis for moving forward. Neither is trying to stay one step ahead of the police. They will catch up to you sooner or later.
David told me there have been some very preliminary conversations with people in the administration to see if there is a way to move this difficult issue forward. There are a lot of moving parts that need to mesh together for anything to work, and right now the best thing everyone can do to help is to have some patience.
I’ve been involved in political issues before, and while it may not look like anything is going on, progress often has to get to a certain point before anyone knows discussions have even been occurring.
For now, if we can all have some patience on the matter, there is a better chance of something concrete being achieved. If we get all loud and pushy right now, it actually minimizes the possibility of getting anything done.
There may be a time when it is appropriate for everyone’s voices to be heard, but we need to do it at the right time, and will have to work together when the time is right.
