LABELLE, Fla. — Food trucks could soon have more places to set up shop in LaBelle, and fewer hoops to jump through to get started.
Fox 4’s Hendry County Community Correspondent, Austin Schargorodski, works in the area daily, so he knows how popular food trucks are in LaBelle. So, he stopped by one to grab a bite and get the owner's take on the possible changes.
Watch to hear what the owner of Taco-Rriendo food truck told Schargorodski:
For most, food trucks are a quick bite. For others, they’re the first step in building a business. In just three years, Taco-Rriendo has become a LaBelle staple, serving up traditional quesabirrias to Austin’s neighbors.
But owner Rosa Silba says starting out gets expensive, and they were lucky to avoid one of the biggest costs - a $1,500 special exemption fee.
"Just like in permits, and things like that I spent a good $2000 not counting how much I spent to buy the trailer. Three different insurances," she said.
That’s one of the changes the city wants to make. Instead of a $1,500 fee and public hearing, the new ordinance would let food trucks apply through a simplified city process.
It also opens up new locations, like neighborhood clubhouses, and sets rules to keep operations clean, safe, and fair to brick-and-mortars.
LaBelle Commissioner Hugo Vargas told Schargorodski he wants to see a designated food truck park.
"We can all contain them on the same property and be able to give our community that location where they can go and experience a variety of different foods,” said Vargas.
“I believe that having a food truck park is going to be amazing. Because now, it's not just going to benefit the local people, but people passing by,” said Silba.
And this isn't just about easing the process. Commissioner Vargas says it's about helping people build something bigger.
"At some point they'll make the jump and they'll say, you know what? I think we can we can handle the overhead of a brick and mortar,” he said.
Silba says that's exactly the kind of direction she's been eyeing. “I definitely see ourselves opening a restaurant. We're looking into expanding to another food truck. So, more expansion, more opportunities, and being able to keep helping our community as well,” said Silba.
Commissioners will discuss the ordinance at Thursday's meeting.
