portland food carts-short5

8/8/2019 Portland Food Carts-Short5

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Portland food carts

Twitter Me This: Taco Trucks and Cupcakes-

Gentrification, Evolution or Something In Between?APA 2010New Orleans/ UCLA/USC: Contesting the Streets Conference May 2010


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the food cart scene

The food cart scene is not new to Portland, justthe hypeseen as a very easy market to enterand the regulations are not excessive

For perspective, in just the past two years therehas been a 40% increase in the # of food carts.

Today there are well over 450 food carts

from mobile to stationary; concentrateddowntown, but growing in our urbanneighborhoods

They provide food choices from everycontinent and almost every food group

They have a dedicated website

www.foodcartportland.com, but noorganized voice

Offer interim uses on vacant lots, onunderutilized sites, and brownfields

in ourneighborhoods; locate on surface parking

lots downtown.


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An example of the growthBefore (2008)

4 carts


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Today

from 4 to 17.


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an old church in 1984 on Mississippi S


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Todaypegged, the Mississippi Marketplace

anchored by a bar and 10 food cartslikely bedfellows!

Beer and food! Or is it, food then beer!


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Alberta Street Main Street


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Vacant lot reuse along Alberta


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Greeley Street Main Streetbrownfield reuse


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Property owners advertising for food cart

St. Johns Main Street community inNorth Portland

Designated a State Main Streetprogram last year and propertyowners are getting on board toward

the regeneration of their main street.


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Regulatory framework

Multnomah Countyfood handlers license

Bureau ofDevelopmentServices-permitreview

TransportationBureau

sidewalk

vending


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Food Cartology :

rethinking urban spaces as people places

Group of PSU students partnered withthe Bureau of Planning:

Two issues: study the effects offood carts on street vitality andneighborhood livability and the

community economic developmentrole of these food carts

Inform the Planning Bureau of thegrowing industry to include inpolicy discussions around thePortland Plan


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Findings

Food carts have positive impacts on streetvitality and neighborhood life in lower density

residential neighborhoods as well as in thehigh density downtown area.

When a cluster of carts is located on a privatesite, the heightened intensity of use can

negatively impact the surrounding community,primarily from the lack of trash cans,bathrooms, etc.

A carts exterior appearance does not affect

social interactions or the publics overallopinion of the carts; seating availability ismore important for promoting socialinteraction than the appearance of the carts

exterior.


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Findings (cont)

The presence of food carts on a site does not appear to hinder itsdevelopment.

Food carts represent beneficial employment opportunities because

theyprovide an improved quality of life and promote social interactionbetween owners and customers.

Despite the beneficial opportunities that food carts can provide, thare numerous challenges to owning a food cart. While many food

owners want to open a storefront business, there is a financial leapfrom a food cart operation to opening a storefront.

Food cart owners do not frequently access small business develop

resources available to them, such as bank loans and other forms oassistance.


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Community economic development

Characteristics of Vendors

Owners of food carts are often minorities andimmigrants: Outside of CBD--over half of the food

cart vendors are Latino. Greater mix of ethnicities(Latino, Caucasian, and Asian) within the CBD--morethan half (51%) of the vendors surveyed were bornoutside of the US.

Financial Success

Food cart vendors can mostly support themselvesand their families: 63% of vendors agreed orstrongly agreed with the statement: The food carthas been a good way for me to support myself andmy family.

Approximately half of vendors own a home: 49% ofthe vendors report owning their own home.

Several cart owners have other jobs: 19% ofrespondents reported having an additional year-

round job and another 13% have seasonal jobs inaddition to the cart.


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Recommendations

Set of recommendations included:

Indentifying additional locations for food carts--As properties devthe city should be proactive in creating partnerships with developpublic and private property owners, and other organizations

Increase awareness of informational resourcesconnect these mi entrepreneurs with existing programs--Mercycorp

NW, Hacienda CDC,

Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Portland Development Commis

Promote innovative design elements that support food carts--

Street

amenities, design regulations for right-of-way push carts


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The Food Cartology

study could be found at:

www.portlandonline.com/bps/index.cfm?a=200738&c=4747

For more information:Alma Flores

Economic PlannerCity of Portland, Planning and Sustainability

[email protected]

Thank you!
http://www.portlandonline.com/bps/index.cfm?a=200738&c=47477http://www.portlandonline.com/bps/index.cfm?a=200738&c=47477mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://www.portlandonline.com/bps/index.cfm?a=200738&c=47477

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