New Orleans Considers Easing Regulations on Food Trucks

A small step for liberty possible in the bayou

The ongoing need for retail development in Gentilly and eastern New Orleans and apresentation on easing the city's regulations for mobile vendors are set to be discussed Tuesday morning at a meeting of the New Orleans City Council'sEconomic Development and Special Development Projects Committee at City Hall.

The city's licensing process mobile vendors covers the gourmet food trucks that have popped up in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina as well as other merchants that sell anything from produce to snowballs. The regulations, which are more than a half-century old, have been updated sparingly over the years, and food-truck operators and city officials agree that as the industry has changed, the restrictions have become outdated.