Ferndale holds food-truck listening session as city weighs private-property rules

Ferndale Planning Commission members convened a fact-finding discussion on March 19 with food-truck owners and property operators to gather operational details that staff said will inform any future rules for food trucks on private property.

The session, led by planning staff and Vice Chair Schwalter, was explicitly framed as a learning exercise: “we really hadn’t had any feedback or consulted anybody who was dealing with food trucks and really wanted to understand just how food trucks operate in Ferndale,” planning staff member Roger said during the meeting. The discussion focused on private-property arrangements (restaurants, parking lots and private landlords) and did not address public vending on city-owned land.

Vendors described how they currently operate and asked the commission to keep rules predictable. Abdullah, a franchise owner of a burger truck with multiple locations, said instability in other cities has been costly: “we just invested last year about $10,000 just to do asphalt for our food trucks … But what we’re really scared of is 1 day the ordinance is like, ‘Hey, you’re not allowed to be here anymore,’ and then we get kicked out.” Abdullah and other vendors urged the city to allow multi-year certainty so property owners will sign long-term leases and vendors will invest in improvements.

Participants outlined a set of recurring operational details staff said they needed to understand: licensing timelines, access to restrooms for employees and patrons, gray-water and grease disposal, generator noise, parking and traffic circulation, trash handling, and whether stationary units must return to a commissary. Several vendors said they operate under a stationary-transit food unit (STFU) license and prepare food on-site; one vendor described sealed gray-water drums transported nightly to a licensed commissary.

Fire Chief Theresa Robinson described the fire-safety side of permitting and inspection: “NFPA standards … There is a standard for food trucks,” she told the group, and noted the department offers an annual food-truck rally with a discounted inspection fee that the chief said is far lower than some neighboring cities. “In comparison, Detroit charges a $100,” she said, while Ferndale’s seasonal inspection fee was described at the meeting as roughly $35–$40. Robinson said her office tries to coordinate reciprocity with other jurisdictions but that communities differ in the fees and standards they accept.

Other recurring vendor requests captured during the session: - Align city license renewals with health-department renewal dates so a vendor cannot operate on an expired health license during a gap; vendors described mismatched expiration dates as a recurring compliance problem. - Clear, concise ordinance language that vendors and property owners can follow; multiple speakers asked for a simple checklist of requirements. - Reasonable standards on restroom access for employees and patrons. Several vendors said they have written agreements with neighboring businesses (for example Ferndale Foods, Biggby and Red Olive) permitting bathroom use during operating hours, while others rely on on-site facilities or portable solutions. - Predictable approval process such as one-time site approval with limited amendment requirements when operations change, rather than repeated seasonal approvals.

Vendors also described operational workarounds they use to respond to neighbor complaints: quieter inverter generators, signage to prevent on-street parking in restricted areas, and police coordination when lines affect traffic flow. One vendor said the community’s social-media promotion and consistent hours were major drivers of repeat customers; another said the train stopping on 9 Mile boosted visibility for a corner location.

The Planning Commission did not propose or adopt any ordinance language at the meeting. Staff reiterated that the draft food-truck section had been removed from the recent zoning rewrite for further discussion, and that tonight’s session was intended to surface operational realities before the city drafts rules. Planning staff committed to reach back to participants before any formal permitting proposals are published for public comment.

Next steps: planning staff said they will use the input to draft potential permitting alternatives (for example a one-time site approval, a seasonal permit, or a vendor-zone approach) and said they will notify vendors and property owners when those drafts are ready for review.