City amends policy on food carts

Mobile food vendors in Whitefish should be able to operate on a more consistent basis following a change in city regulations.

Whitefish City Council on March 3 unanimously approved a change to streamline review standards and permits for vendors not associated with a community event. Vendors will now be able to obtain a one-year permit, renewable if no issues have come up.

Michael Tighe, who operates a food cart in front of the VFW, said the change will help his business grow.

“I think this is good,” he said. “Now I can only operate for seven months of the year, but this will allow me to have a more substantive income.”

Currently, vendors are approved for a 30-day trial permit and then can obtain two 90-day permits in a calendar year. The permit only allows businesses to operate for a total of seven months per year.

“This will provide more certainty for business owners,” Mayor John Muhlfeld said.

City planning staff recommended the change saying the current process is burdensome, not only to business owners, but also city staff who had to check on the permits multiple times in a year.

Planning Director Dave Taylor said that some vendors would simple change the name of their business to get around the regulation, making it unfair to those who followed the rule by only operating seven months of the year.

Mobile vendors are still restricted to a total of 10 in any one zoning district and must be on private property with the owner’s permission. They can only operate a maximum of six consecutive hours per day and carts must be moved off site by 3 a.m.