Licenses panel recommends 10‑day suspension for food‑truck base after health‑department objections

The Licenses Committee recommended that the Common Council impose a 10‑day suspension on the food‑dealer license for the Tacos de La Getza base and its three food trucks after Milwaukee Health Department testimony described multiple inspections that found the trucks lacking potable water and evidence of repeated food‑safety violations.

Health Department manager Lauren Wobrell told the committee that inspectors found extensive pest evidence and structural problems at one facility and that two separate inspections of a food‑truck base resulted in closures and citations for food‑safety failures. Wobrell said the operator had been combative with inspectors during earlier interventions but was later more cooperative as the department tried to bring the operation back into compliance.

Neighbors and aldermen pressed the operator about recurring problems and asked whether the trucks had reliable hot water and properly functioning handwashing stations during winter months. The operator acknowledged earlier lapses and said he had taken steps to remedy equipment and training problems.

Alderman Peter Bergellis moved that the committee recommend a 10‑day suspension based on the preponderance of evidence in the police and health reports and applicant testimony; the committee ordered the findings-of-fact report to the Common Council, which will take final action on April 21. The committee also required the owner to return with an amended plan of operation, including concrete equipment upgrades and a compliance timeline, and to coordinate with the Health Department on reinspection.

The suspension recommendation covers the base and the three food trucks associated with the license; the restaurant portion of any separate brick‑and‑mortar business was not affected by the committee’s motion. The committee’s action is a recommendation — the Common Council will make the final determination.