Food truck owners to bid for 'super stalls'

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STAR-ADVERTISER
Ten stalls in the downtown area — each consisting of two adjoining parking spaces — would be designated for trucks that win bids to sell food.

Oahu food truck operators will need to bid for one of 10 on-street "super stalls" at five locations in order to operate in the Honolulu Capital Special Design District during lunch hours under a two-year pilot project expected to begin soon.

Officials with the city Department of Transportation Services and Department of Enterprise Services will explain the process to food truck operators and the public at an informational meeting at the Neal Blaisdell Center Hawaii Suites from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday.

Transportation Services Director Michael Formby said his staff walked the entire district to find out where the trucks park now, and where they would be most beneficial and conducive.

Two adjoining parking stalls are being set aside for each "super stall" that will be reserved between 10:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. Monday through Friday for trucks whose owners win the bids.

Under the new law, Ordinance 14-5, no other trucks will be allowed to operate on public streets in the Honolulu Capital Special Design District when the permit restrictions are in place.

The district is defined in the Honolulu Land Use Ordinance as the area generally bounded by Alakea and Queen Emma streets on the Ewa end; Vineyard Boulevard and H-1 freeway on the mauka side; Cooke Street, the Honolulu Police Department headquarters and other points (but not quite west of Ward Avenue)on the Diamond Head end; and parts of Ala Moana Boulevard, Pohukaina Street, Kapiolani Boulevard, South King Street and other streets on the makai side.

It’s unclear how long the permits will be good for. It’s also not clear whether multiple vendors, assuming they do not want to operate out of the area five days a week, can join with other vendors to make a bid.

"It’s a little bit unknown right now," Formby said. "A lot of it is going to be dictated by the industry response to the public meeting."

Formby said it’s also uncertain at this point if all the selected stalls will prove ultimately to be popular enough for the operators.

Besides the Mililani Street stalls, Formby said the Lauhala Street location, sandwiched between a number of government office buildings, could attract some interest.

If certain stalls do not attract bidders, the law allows for his department to reconsider where the wagons should go.

"We’re always open for ways to make it work," Formby said. "And the ordinance gives me that flexibility."

City officials had previously discussed a $400-a-month minimum bid per super stall but it’s uncertain whether that is still the plan.

The bill was introduced by City Council Chairman Ernie Martin, who said some vendors had asked for a permitting system that would make it easier for them to settle into an area if they had a permit, rather than needing to drive around trying to find open meters they would need to feed.

"This (law) is an attempt to make the competition for street space fair, provide a reliable service to the public, and earn a small amount of revenue for the city," Martin said in a release shortly after the bill was passed in March.

But food truck operators who have spoken to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser have been split on the plan.

While some have agreed with Martin’s thinking, others said it’s an unnecessary attempt to regulate the trucks.

Some warned they would be forced to set up shop in Kakaako or other areas just outside the district.

Mayor Kirk Caldwell allowed the bill to become law without his signature, citing the concerns raised by several operators who approached him after the bill passed without much fanfare or testimony from vendors.