County Sets First Rules for Food Truck Parks, With Final Vote Aug. 18

St. Johns County is about to have rules for food truck parks for the first time. The county's Planning and Zoning Agency voted unanimously on Aug. 6 to recommend a land development code amendment that defines what a food truck park is, says which zoning districts can host one, and caps operating hours at 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. The Board of County Commissioners holds the final public hearing and adoption vote Aug. 18, and the outcome decides where these places can open around St. Augustine and how late they can serve.

Right now the county code does not recognize a food truck park at all. That gap is exactly what shut down The Outpost at Old Moultrie Road in April, and it is why commissioners ordered this rewrite in May.

What the draft actually requires

Three or more trucks on one parcel makes it a park. The definition also covers permanent on-site seating, sanitary facilities and amenities where multiple mobile vendors sell food or drinks. Parks would be allowed in Highway Commercial, High Intensity Commercial and Rural Commercial zoning. Single trucks would be permitted as a temporary use in more districts, including Commercial Intensive and Commercial Warehouse, for up to three days.

Standard	Draft requirement
Hours	7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Truck spacing	10 ft, or NFPA minimum if greater
Distance from homes	100 ft from a residential structure
Seating	3 seats per truck
Parking	5 spaces, or 1 per 3 seats
Utilities	Water, wastewater, grease interceptor

ADA-compliant access, restrooms, trash receptacles and centralized solid waste storage are also on the list.

The hours are not what staff first proposed. The original draft ran 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Vendors told commissioners at the July 21 first reading that the window cut off both breakfast and dinner, and the board backed widening it by an hour on each end. Planning Division Manager Jacob Smith told commissioners in July that the goal was clear development criteria that still protect neighboring properties.

The music question

Most of the discussion at the Aug. 6 hearing was about noise, specifically outdoor seating and live or amplified music at parks that back up to houses. Agency member Judy Spiegel asked whether the ordinance should spell out rules for live entertainment. Staff said a food truck park, as an outdoor commercial use, can include things like live music, but amplified sound stays subject to the county's existing noise ordinance.

The agency asked staff to add a direct reference to that noise ordinance as an operating standard before the amendment reaches commissioners. Members also pressed on commercial parcels that sit right against subdivisions; staff pointed back to the 100-foot separation and the hours cap as the compatibility tools. Board members Meagan Perkins and Greg Matovina were absent for the vote.

How Old Moultrie Road got here

The Outpost, a food and retail spot on 1.84 acres off Old Moultrie Road launched by Justin and Jessica Tahilramani, was closed by the county in April. Staff had determined the parcel did not qualify as a previously developed site, citing the demolition of a structure there and the absence of paved parking, utilities and restrooms.

Justin Tahilramani appealed, arguing the county misread its own code and never clearly barred food trucks as an accessory use. On May 5, commissioners sided with him 3-2. Christian Whitehurst, Ann Taylor and Sarah Arnold voted to overturn the staff interpretation; Clay Murphy and Krista Joseph voted no. Murphy warned that the decision could undercut established rules and create legal exposure. Joseph said she was not comfortable with an immediate reopening and wanted parking control and site management sorted out first.

Whitehurst pushed the other way, saying the priority was getting the business open while the county fixed the code, and that food truck parks should not be regulated as though they were brick-and-mortar restaurants. Immediately after the appeal vote, the board voted unanimously to have staff write the ordinance now heading to adoption.

The Aug. 18 hearing starts at 9 a.m. in the County Auditorium at 500 San Sebastian View in St. Augustine, and it is a public hearing, so residents and vendors can speak before the vote. Meetings are streamed on the county's site; the schedule is posted on the county commission calendar. Whether the noise ordinance reference the planning agency requested makes it into the final language will not be clear until the ordinance is on the dais.

For more from around town, visit the St. Augustine Community Website, and tell us what you think about the new hours and music rules in our Community Forum. You can also read more government and politics stories and keep up with new openings in local business coverage.