Coun. Ian Ward wants council to pull back on being “the fun police of Colwood” and maintain the status quo until the public can weigh in
Colwood is limiting food trucks at the Esquimalt Lagoon beach to one August concert this summer, rather than allowing them every weekend.
Food trucks at the beach will only be allowed for an Aug. 23 concert from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., part of Colwood’s Music in the Park series.
Council made the decision after receiving a staff report recommending the move, in order to shift commercial activity and large events away from the Lagoon Beach to other city parks and public spaces, and to not draw business from “the growing number of eateries in Colwood.”
Ecological concerns were also cited for the move, especially the impact of activity on the sensitive environment of the Esquimalt Lagoon Migratory Bird Sanctuary.
Last summer, two to three food trucks were at the beach every Saturday and Sunday.
Anroe Aseron, who operates Hotdog Hustlin’ food trucks in Victoria and Vancouver with partner Jocel Torreda, said he has had his units at the lagoon beach but found business there to be inconsistent.
The new rules in Colwood are not a big concern, he said, because he likes to try a variety of locations for his trucks.
Councillors Ian Ward and Misty Olsen both opposed the motion to limit food trucks, with Ward calling for council to pull back on being “the fun police of Colwood” and maintain the status quo until the public can weigh in.
“There’s a lack of data supporting this type of move,” Ward said at a council debate on the issue. “It’s based on feeling, not a lot of facts.”
He noted that 97.2 per cent of respondents to a 2022 survey of Colwood residents confirmed support for food trucks at the lagoon, which he says complement music events at the beach.
He said council is removing a service “that has proven to be very popular and was supported by data.”
Mayor Doug Kobayashi backed the new limits, however, noting the arrival of food trucks at the lagoon resulted in a drop in business at a Colwood Corners sandwich shop he used to own.
Kobayashi said food trucks aren’t necessarily bad, but council has to respect local businesses by bringing in some controls.
Council directed city staff in March 2024 to reduce overall use of the beach over the course of three years.
The staff report noted that the city’s beach-food program started in 2016, when Colwood had fewer food-service options.
“Mobile food vendors were a way to expand the number of food offerings to residents.”
The report said the program was intended to “showcase” Colwood’s waterfront and establish the municipality as “a seaside city within the region.”
Since then, the number of food-related businesses at Colwood Corners and Royal Bay Commons has been increasing, the report said, with more anticipated due to continued development at Royal Bay and the Beachlands.
In 2023, the Eats & Beats Beach Party was moved from the lagoon area to the Beachlands site. A dozen or more food trucks are expected to be at that event on July 26.
Julie Lawlor, executive director of the West Shore Chamber of Commerce, said she plans to talk to some food-truck owners about the issue, noting the chamber meets regularly with the city and will be discussing the decision in detail.
“As a chamber, we are interested in being able to support small business, which includes both the food trucks and local businesses that are bricks and mortar.”
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