Osage Beach aldermen reject ordinance that would remove food‑truck distance restriction

The Osage Beach Board of Aldermen voted down a proposed ordinance that would remove a distance restriction on food trucks and confirm their treatment as a subclass of peddlers.

The measure, identified as Bill 25‑81 during the board’s second reading, prompted more than an hour of discussion on whether the city should keep a proximity rule (previously recommended at 200 feet by the Citizens Advisory Committee), whether food trucks should be carved out from other peddlers, and how the city could enforce sales‑tax collection by itinerant vendors.

City Attorney Cole Bradbury summarized the change as narrowing the city’s regulatory role and relying more on state regulation for some professions; he also told the board that the ordinance would only affect food trucks and not other peddlers. Alderman Kevin Rucker read constituent comments both for and against the change and pressed for clarity on how the rules would be applied.

Several aldermen cited competing priorities. “I want food trucks to come here, I want that price down somewhere that makes sense for them, but that also means it needs to be fair and balanced for our brick‑and‑mortar restaurants that have been here for 30 or 40 years,” Alderman Hoffman said, arguing for retaining some distance protection for long‑standing businesses. Alderman Collins said she supports reforms but preferred to delay the change while staff and council develop a broader solution that addresses sales‑tax collection and special‑use processes.

Supporters of the change, including Alderman Barela, said removing the distance restriction would remove an obstacle for mobile vendors and that other staff work could address tax collection details. Board members also discussed whether lowering permit fees would trigger a public vote under existing ballot language; staff explained the city’s options for adjusting duration or fee levels without fully eliminating the $500 baseline in certain circumstances.

After discussion and a roll‑call vote, Bill 25‑81 failed. Several aldermen said they wanted to pursue alternate approaches—Alderman Collins’ special‑use plan and enforcement tools coming later on the agenda were cited as likely next steps.

The board’s action leaves the existing advisory 200‑foot recommendation and the city’s current food‑truck regulations in place while staff and aldermen continue to work on a package that could address fees, enforcement and fairness to brick‑and‑mortar restaurants.