Multiple mobile food and ice-cream vendors addressed the Town Board during a public hearing, asking the town to review how parks vending license recommendations were made.

The hearing concerned license agreements for townwide mobile ice-cream trucks and mobile fast-food and beverage trucks. Several bidders said the selection committee appeared to prioritize higher monetary offers over experience, hours of operation and menu variety, contrary to the RFP evaluation criteria.

Connor (Connor Hallas) Hallas, representing Hallas Ice Cream, said he submitted a competitive bid and "three solid recommendations" and asked the town to "reevaluate their parks vendors decision based off the needs of the community and not the financial need of the town." He emphasized a decade of mobile-food experience and noted his product options include kosher soft serve and dairy-free items.

Ashley Seguili, manager of Cool Cat Soft LLC, referenced the RFP scoring on the printed evaluation matrix: "experience counts as 30%. Fee proposal counts as 30%. Proposed hours of operation... 25%. Nutritional value and a variety of menu items offered at 15%" and asked whether her firm27s complete submission and supporting letters were given full weight during evaluation. Ronald Goldstein, attorney for V and J Trading New York, Inc., noted his client was the highest bidder and emphasized long service to the town.

Speakers asked the board to confirm that the selection committee followed the RFP27s criteria and to consider community engagement and nonfinancial factors when making awards. The board did not take an immediate action to reopen awards at the meeting; the hearing record will be available for review by the selection committee and the board.