Del Mar Municipal Code Ch. 9.26 Mobile Vending

The purpose of this Chapter is to regulate mobile vending activities in order to protect public health, safety, and welfare, while accommodating commercial uses that generally promote an active and social pedestrian environment within appropriate areas of the City of Del Mar.

(Ord. No. 881)

The following words and terms are defined for the purpose of applying the provisions of this Chapter:

A. License shall mean a City of Del Mar Business License.

B. Mobile Food Truck shall mean a motorized vehicle or vehicle-towed trailer in which food is cooked and/or prepared to order and is served to walk up customers.

C. Mobile Food Truck Event shall mean an organized gathering of Mobile Food Truck vendors, located on a private, commercially zoned property, and which is open to the general public and operates on a regular schedule.

D. Mobile Food Vending shall mean selling, vending, supplying or providing of food, drinks or any other consumables from a temporary stand, vehicle, truck, trailer, cart, wagon, motorized or human-powered wheeled device. Mobile Food Vending does not include commercial activity without food or drink sales provided in Chapter 6.48 of this Code.

E. Permit shall mean an Operations Permit: Mobile Vending in accordance with DMMC Chapter 6.50.

F. Property Owner shall mean the holder of fee title to a property, whether a person, partnership, corporation or other entity recognized by law, and his/her/its lessees, permittees, assignees or successors in interest.

G. Public Property shall mean any real property owned, leased, operated, or controlled by the City of Del Mar other than a street, alley, parkway, sidewalk or other area dedicated, identified or used as a public right-of-way.

H. Public Right-of-Way shall mean any public street, road, avenue, highway, named or unnamed alley, lane, court, place trail, or other public way, operated and/or controlled by the City or other public entity, or subject to an easement owned by or dedicated or granted to City.

I. Special Event shall mean an activity or series of activities, specific to an identifiable time and place, most often produced in conjunction with community organizations, held on public or private property, which require the receipt of a City of Del Mar Facilities Use Permit or other Operations Permit pursuant to Title 6 of this Code.

A. No person shall conduct Mobile Vending operations on Public Property or Public Right-of-Way without first obtaining a Permit in accordance with the provisions of DMMC Chapter 6.50 (Operations Permit—Mobile Vending) and this Chapter.

B. No Property Owner shall allow Mobile Vending operations to be conducted on private property without first obtaining a Permit in accordance with the provisions of DMMC Chapter 6.50 (Operations Permit—Mobile Vending) and this Chapter.

C. No Permit shall be required when the mobile vending activity is associated with the operation of a City-permitted Special Event, subject to the conditions thereof.

D. No Permit shall be required when the mobile vending activity is limited to a single Mobile Food Truck on private property operating solely for private catering purposes and when all of the following provisions are met:

1. The Mobile Food Truck is parked entirely on private property; and

2. Service is limited to the guests of the catered event only.

3. No payment transactions shall occur for individual orders taken by the Mobile Food Truck operator.

It is unlawful for any person to engage in the activity of Mobile Vending or operate a Mobile Food Truck in the City without having a current Business License obtained from the City in accordance with the provisions of DMMC Title 5.

A. It is unlawful for any person to engage in the activity of Mobile Food Vending or to operate a Mobile Food Truck in the City of Del Mar without a valid permit, certificate or other authorization required by the County of San Diego Department of Health.

All Mobile Vendors, including Mobile Food Truck operators, shall be subject to reporting of tax revenues generated within the City of Del Mar on a form supplied by the City.

A. No Mobile Food Truck shall, except when performing a private catering function in conformance with Subsection 9.26.030.C of this Chapter, may operate before 10:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m., including set-up and clean-up.

B. No Mobile Food Truck shall operate within 500 feet of any off-street Mobile Food Truck Event, City-Permitted special or reoccurring event. Exceptions to this prohibition are allowed when consent is provided within the Special Event permit, or when mobile food trucks are requested as part of the Special Event permit. In this case, all standards and conditions required by Section 9.26.080 of this Code shall apply. If necessary, additional conditions may be imposed to ensure public/pedestrian safety (example: temporary, controlled street crossings) shall be required.

C. Mobile Food Trucks shall not idle vehicle engines more than five minutes during any one-hour time period.

D. Mobile Food Truck operators shall be responsible for controlling smoke and odors caused by food preparation so as to avoid a public nuisance.

E. All food containers, utensils and napkins distributed to customers from a Mobile Food Truck shall be biodegradable, compostable or recyclable.

F. No amplified music or loudspeakers shall be permitted. The operation shall at all times comply with the provisions of the City's Noise Ordinance (DMMC Chapter 9.20).

G. No temporary lighting shall be provided on the site where the Mobile Food Truck is operating, except that localized lighting may be used on or in the Mobile Food Trucks for the purpose of inside food preparation and menu illumination.

H. No signage other than that exhibited on the Mobile Food Truck may be displayed at the site where the Mobile Food Truck is operating. The prohibition shall include any hand-held signage and handbills.

I. No sales or service of alcohol shall be allowed by Mobile Food Trucks.

Mobile Food Trucks may operate on private properties in the Central Commercial, Beach Commercial and North Commercial Zones pursuant to the following minimum standards and conditions:

A. One Mobile Food Truck shall be allowed for each 1,500 square feet of paved, level parking area on a site, provided that parking spaces in that area are not reserved, encumbered, or designated to satisfy the off-street parking of a business or activity that is operating at the same time as the Mobile Food Truck.

B. No more than eight Mobile Food Trucks shall operate on any private property at one time.

C. A minimum of two off-street parking spaces shall be provided for each Mobile Food Truck. The parking required herein shall be provided free of charge and shall not be reserved, encumbered, or designated to satisfy the off-street parking of another business or activity that is operating on the site at the same time as the Mobile Food Truck.

D. A minimum of two fixed-location bicycle parking spaces per Mobile Food Truck shall be required on the site at which the Mobile Food Truck is operation.

E. No Mobile Food Truck Events shall operate more frequently than one day per week.

F. A minimum of one accessible restroom with hand-washing facilities shall be made available during all hours the Mobile Food Truck Event is in operation. These facilities must be located on-site and be made available for use by patrons of the event.

G. Separate refuse and recycling containers shall be provided on-site during all hours of Mobile Food Truck operations. All litter generated within a minimum of a 100-foot radius of the site shall be collected prior to closure of the Mobile Food Truck operations.

H. No overnight parking of Mobile Food Trucks shall be allowed on the permitted vending site.

I. A maximum 200 square-foot, uncovered seating area may be provided to serve patrons of the Mobile Food Truck. All seating areas shall be removed prior to close of the Mobile Food Truck Event for the day. The seating shall be located in an area of the site that is not reserved, encumbered, or designated to satisfy the off-street parking of a business or activity that is operating at the same time as the Mobile Food Truck (Event).

Mobile Food Trucks may operate in legal parallel parking spaces located adjacent to commercially zoned properties provided they comply with all of the following minimum standards and conditions:

A. Mobile Food Trucks shall be parked directly adjacent to a paved sidewalk (not parkway) which contains a minimum width of seven feet, free and clear for pedestrian passage, as measured perpendicular to the face of the curb.

B. Food service shall be limited solely to that side of the Mobile Food Truck facing the adjacent sidewalk.

C. The Mobile Food Truck shall be in full compliance with all parking and Vehicle Code provisions which apply to the location at which it is parked, including the maximum allowed parking time limit for the parking space(s) occupied.

D. The Mobile Food Truck operations shall not obstruct pedestrian or vehicular traffic.

E. The Mobile Food Truck operator shall not encroach onto a public sidewalk with any part of the vehicle or any other equipment or furniture related to the operation of its business, except for required refuse receptacles.

F. No Mobile Food Truck operator shall conduct business unless he or she maintains a clearly designated refuse and recycling receptacle(s) in the immediate vicinity of the vehicle. Such receptacles shall be marked with a sign requesting use by patrons. Prior to leaving the location, the Mobile Food Truck Operator shall pick up, remove and dispose of all trash generated by the Mobile Food Truck operations within 100 feet of the Truck.

G. No Mobile Food Truck shall operate within 25 feet of any street intersection controlled by a crosswalk, traffic light, or stop sign.

H. Prior to the commencement of operations, the Mobile Food Truck operator shall secure a written agreement, with a copy provided to the City, giving the operator and his/her employees the right to use permanent sanitation facilities located not more than 200 feet from the location where the Mobile Food Truck will be operated.

I. The Mobile Food Truck operator shall maintain, and supply copies to the City, policies of commercial general liability and automobile liability in an amount no less than $1,000,000.00 per occurrence naming the City as an additional insured.

Non-profit organizations may conduct Mobile Food Truck Events on public property or on non-profit organization owned property with the prior receipt of an Operations Permit if held to raise funds for the hosting non-profit organization(s). The Operations Permit shall be subject to Sections 9.26.070 and 9.26.080 of this Chapter, and all of the following:

A. A minimum ten percent of all food sales shall be donated to the non-profit organization sponsoring the event.

B. Fundraising events may only occur during the allowed operating hours specified in the DMMC and only at the times of the day and week when the primary use of the property is not being operated and when the parking located on the site is not allocated to another use.