Columbiana council reviews rewrite of food-truck rules; first reading set for next meeting

Council members conducted a first reading April 15 of a rewritten mobile food-unit ordinance that city staff said is intended to clarify where and how food trucks operate in Columbiana.

Mayor outlined the major changes: mobile food operators would need an annual city business license (the application must include current Shelby County Health Department approvals), written permission from the property or business owner for each location (to be kept on the unit), and would be prohibited from operating on public rights-of-way and in residentially zoned parcels except for private events with written approval. Hours would be limited to 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. unless special permission is granted, signage would be limited, audible devices restricted, and a 200-foot buffer would apply between a food truck and a restaurant's main entrance during the restaurant's posted hours.

The ordinance removes a prior permitting requirement city staff said had not been consistently administered and shifts responsibility to operators to secure property-owner approval. Councilmembers discussed enforcement, the distinction between private events and public vending, and how the 200-foot measurement would be interpreted in practice. One councilmember asked whether a food truck at a private driveway event would be allowed; staff replied that private events where the truck is not open to the public would not be treated as a public vending location but that sales tax obligations could still apply.

The draft will be posted on the city website for public comment and returned for further discussion at the next council meeting where councilmembers may amend language before a second reading.

Quotations in the discussion were provided by the mayor and councilmembers during the first-reading explanation; no ordinance text was adopted at first reading in the transcript.