Dallas City Hall. Photo by Hilary Schleier.
The City of Dallas has changed its plans for where the mobile food vending zone pilot program will launch.
On Feb. 22, Convention and Event Services presented its plans for the pilot to the Quality of Life, Arts and Culture Committee. The Bath House Cultural Center near White Rock Lake and Pacific Plaza were the proposed locations for the program.
The next step was for Code Compliance to speak with the committee in March to discuss additional details about the program; in January, the department had asked for more time to research how other cities regulate raw food preparation and define “mobile” for mobile food units.
The Advocate reported this news Feb. 24. Read the original article here.
But the plans for the pilot have changed, and the Bath House is no longer a proposed location for the program’s launch. Instead, Kiest Park has been selected.
After the committee meeting, Rosa Fleming — the director of Convention and Event Services — met with representatives from Dallas Park & Recreation. Fleming said during that conversation, it was agreed that because more research had been done about the viability of this type of program at Kiest Park compared to the Bath House, the location would be changed.
Maria Hasbany, the District 9 Park and Recreation Board member, said in an email to The Advocate that she was informed the afternoon of Feb. 24 about the decision to move the location to Kiest Park.
“The mobile food vending zone pilot program committee had suggested the Bath House as a potential location but didn’t realize that there is already a program in place for mobile food vendors at White Rock Lake Park,” Hasbany wrote. “After a discussion with our Park & Recreation director, Kiest Park was identified as an excellent alternative and the program will be implemented there instead.”
But, Fleming said, “it’s not a matter of never ever at the Bath House.”
John Lawrence, an assistant director of Park & Recreation, confirmed that at this time, the Bath House will not be a location for the pilot. But he said that in the future, if the program is successful and there is interest in expanding it, the Bath House could become an option with approval from the Park & Recreation board, permits and fulfillment of any other required steps.
Fleming and her team are submitting a memo to the Quality of Life, Arts and Culture committee today. It will include the updated pilot locations and new length of the program (90 days). But nothing is set in stone; the committee could ask the staff to look into more changes.
We’ll continue to provide updates as we learn new information.
