Food truck owners push back against new 10 p.m. curfew; council members signal second thoughts about vote

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- A group of food truck owners gathered at City Hall Thursday to fight back against a new ordinance, forcing trucks operating downtown to close at 10 p.m.

The ordinance passed unanimously earlier this month, but some Common Council members have since indicated they're having second thoughts about their vote.

The new restrictions take effect May 9, and food trucks in a defined downtown zone will no longer be allowed to stay open until 1 a.m., as they are now.

Food truck owners who came to City Hall Thursday said 70 to 80 percent of their sales come between the hours of 10 p.m. and 1 a.m.

"Closing us at 10, it means, for us, closing the business," Abdallah Ismail, owner of The Fatty Patty, said. "But either they don't wanna say it this way or they just wanna force us to close."

Ismail was among the operators who tried to get a word in with Ald. Robert Bauman, who represents downtown and sponsored the proposed new restrictions.

Bauman did not stop to speak with the food truck owners outside the council's office Thursday, but he later agreed to discuss the new restrictions with a CBS 58 reporter.

Bauman said his main inspiration for the earlier curfew was a recommendation from the Milwaukee Police Department (MPD) amid a string of late-night violent incidents on Water Street.

"At this location, we are told by professional law enforcement personnel, at the command staff level, that food trucks are a significant cause of the disorder that is taking place on Water Street," Bauman said. "Especially among underage individuals who can't even patronize the bars."

MPD Chief of Staff Heather Hough testified at the April 10 Public Safety Committee meeting that police did support the proposed restrictions. Police maintain the food trucks are a gathering place for teens, some of whom then end up getting into fights.

"We have issues with people congregating around the food trucks that are not patrons," Hough said. "We have individuals in these areas in the age range below 21 years of age who utilize these open spaces and places to congregate, and that has caused us problems in the past."

The food truck operators maintained they were being scapegoated for the problems other people are causing. Alma Juarez, co-owner of Tacos Almita, said she had never witnessed any disturbances or felt unsafe at her truck's downtown location.

"It's not the food trucks," she said. "It's the people, and you have to be strong with the people because we are just selling food."

Dave Sluss, who runs Dave's Dogs, reasoned the food trucks make it less likely intoxicated patrons will stay out and get into trouble.

"I think a fully belly will actually decrease some of the violence," Sluss said. "When you're full, you wanna get home and do whatever you're gonna do."

Bauman added the Downtown Business Improvement District and Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) also support the new food truck restrictions.

However, Alds. Peter Burgelis and Mark Chambers told CBS 58 a number of council members might be having second thoughts about their vote after hearing from food truck owners. 

Burgelis said he didn't regret his vote, but he also indicated he was willing to revisit the new food truck curfew. Chambers said a conversation about repealing the new restrictions could happen as soon as June.

"Legislating isn't perfect, and if there is an opportunity to do better, I think we have an obligation to always do better," Burgelis said before a CBS 58 reporter asked if he regretted his vote. "I think, given the circumstances of what we knew, I don't regret the vote, but this is a bigger issue of safety in our downtown."

Bauman said the council will weigh additional downtown safety measures, including a late-night curfew on scooter rentals and the creation of a new "security zone" downtown, which could include checkpoints with metal detectors.

It's unusual for the Common Council to enact or repeal an ordinance over the wishes of the alderperson who represents the affected district. However, Burgelis signaled it was a possibility in this case when asked about Bauman's continued support for the new restrictions.

"We have 15 alders in the city of Milwaukee," he said.