Chicago food-truck laws are a success!

By Timothy P. Carney April 16, 2014

Chicago's regulations of food trucks have achieved their desired effect: protecting restaurants by crushing food trucks.

The Schnitzel King reports on Facebook:

Happy Monday schnitzelers! First of all, we want to thank each and every one of you for supporting us through our schnitzel journey. We are sad to say we are closing our doors for now, but that doesn't mean the Schnitzel King will be off the road forever. With the harsh food truck laws in Chicago, coupled with some kinks at our storefront location, we've been forced to close down our schnitzel operations here in Chicago. We are taking our schnitzel to greener pastures so stay tuned for updates in the future!

Schnitzel King's owners are remaining party to a lawsuit led by the Institute for Justice, which posts on the matter:

The city has banned food trucks from doing business within 200 feet of any brick-and-mortar business that serves food. That includes not only restaurants but coffee shops and convenience stores as well.......

Protecting restaurants from rolling competition was a stated goal of the regulations on food trucks, as I reported last year:

Chicago Alderman Tom Tunney — who owns a chain of restaurants — demanded a food truck law that "protects brick-and-mortar restaurants," the Chicago Sun-Times reported. Tunney is the former chairman of the Illinois Restaurant Association, which has led the fight to restrict food trucks.…..To Read More……

 

My Take - This is interesting on so many levels. First off, I can understand why brick and mortar food service operations hate these trucks.It costs a ton of money to start up a restaurant business, to promote it and to keep it open with all the taxes and regulations imposed by the city, and that's every city, not just Chicago.Now after spending all this money and jumping thorough all the hoops required by city government a food truck can pull up in front of your restaurant and 'steal' your customers.

Secondly, these trucks have been a part of downtown Cleveland for as long as I can remember, and I'm going to be 68, and it didn't seem to have that much impact of the restaurants. When people choose to do a 'truck run’ lunch it's because they're simply aren’t going to sit down, or possibly don’t have the cash for a sit down restaurant and wouldn’t be a customer anyway. Does it have some impact?  I’m sure it does, but I'm not sure it's all that great.

Third, and here's the biggie!  I thought Rahm and his crowd were all for the ‘little’ guy! Apparently that's just not anything more than lies and hyperbole in order to get elected, because it would appear they really love the ‘big’ guys, especially if those ‘’big’ guys who are passing the laws that hurt the ‘little’ guys.

Imagine that!