After Drexel’s recent decision to start prohibiting food trucks on campus from parking overnight was met with heavy backlash, Drexel has stopped issuing citations for mobile vendors parked overnight, allowing Pete’s Little Lunch Box, Happy Sunshine, Kami and other trucks to remain open in their usual spot.
In a short meeting with Drexel’s Undergraduate Student Government Association, Project 26 at Drexel and student leader Claire Toomey today, Chief Mel Singleton revealed that Drexel University Police Department (DUPD) will not be issuing any more citations specifically for overnight parking, but would instead leave that up to the Department of License and Inspections. However, DUPD will continue to enforce laws regarding proper propane tank handling and other safety concerns.
Additionally, Brian Keech, Karen Lewis and the Office of Government and Community Relations, are in open communication with councilmember Jamie Gauthier’s office. They urged Drexel students to continue pressuring the city to pass these bills further protecting mobile vendors.
To fulfill her promise to protect Drexel University’s Food Trucks, councilmember Gauthier introduced two new pieces of legislation at the Stated Meeting of Philadelphia City Council on April 10. The first is an ordinance to amend subsection 9-203 of the Philadelphia code to allow food trucks to park overnight. The second is an ordinance for the city to reclaim the 3100 block of Ludlow Street, colloquially known as “Food Truck Alley.”
These bills have just been introduced, and still need to be reviewed by the appropriate committees and voted on before becoming laws. Although the situation has not reached a full resolution, for now, it’s back to business as usual for the beloved food trucks all around campus.