Montgomery board denies food-truck license amid concerns about market saturation

The Village Board of Montgomery voted 1–5 to deny a mobile food facility license for an applicant seeking to park a food truck on Montgomery Road near Douglas Road.

Director Aft told trustees the applicant, identified in the packet as Socorro Nesasio of 732 Montgomery Road, submitted an application after learning the truck was within the village corporate limits. Trustees debated whether additional licenses should be issued in an area the board said is already populated by multiple food trucks and whether permitting another truck would undercut brick-and-mortar businesses and a newly created food-truck court.

"I think after our first two licenses were established, I was pretty much a no," said a trustee who opposed the license, adding the market is "saturated." Another trustee said the board should be consistent in licensing, warning that if the board decides to stop new licenses, existing license renewals should be scrutinized similarly.

One trustee who voted to approve argued the market should dictate who succeeds and that the village should not pick winners and losers. That motion was defeated on roll call, tally 1–5.

The applicant was not present for the meeting, and staff noted the truck is currently not operating and was sitting on the property. Trustees also discussed directing would-be vendors toward the existing food-truck court created to centralize vendors in a single location.

With the vote, the village did not grant the license; trustees did not set a formal new policy at the meeting beyond remarks urging consistent standards when considering future applications.