The Ketchum City Council and Mayor Randy Hall agreed Monday that city ordinance should be changed to allow food vendors in Ketchum Town Square, despite persistent pushback from restaurateurs. However, the council was still divided and, at times, undecided concerning the rules and regulations for these vendors.
This division also persisted—but to a far greater extent—throughout the Town Square Vendor Committee's three meetings preceding Monday's council meeting, according to Ketchum Planning Manager Stefanie Leif. The council stated at its last vending meeting on April 19 that a committee, comprised of restaurateurs and community members, should be created to come up with a compromise that wouldn't negatively impact existing restaurateurs, but still allow vending.
The committee included restaurateurs, town square designers, a representative from the Sun Valley-Ketchum Chamber & Visitors Bureau and city staff.
"Unfortunately, a consensus was never reached, and they remained quite divided," Leif said.
Leif said half of the committee didn't stray from its original opinion of not wanting to see any vending on the square for fear that it would take business from brick-and-mortar restaurants. The other half—not in the restaurant business—wanted food vending.
Dale Bates, leader of the Town Square design team, said restaurants' greatest competition isn't grabbing a snack at a vending cart, but people eating dinner at home. He said vendors would draw people out of their homes and into downtown. They may grab a bite at a vending cart, but this wouldn't be their dinner.
Resident and former Councilman Charles Conn also made the same argument.
"Restaurants start and die all the time in this town," he said.
Conn said the argument that a few food vendors will make that any worse is "silly."
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No restaurateurs or anyone in protest of vending spoke at Monday's meeting.
Leif said Ketchum planning staff drafted a plan that the council would pass as a resolution outlining vending rules. The rules would allow two food vendors—in addition to Leroy's Ice Cream already on the square—to operate from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and prohibit them from selling alcohol. Staff proposed that one of these be a nonprofit like Leroy's and the other be someone already possessing a Ketchum business license. The stands would be subject to design review and need a permit. Current ordinance sets fees at $500 for a seasonal permit and $750 for a year-long permit.
Staff recommended these two vendors be chosen by a lottery system.
The council agreed that some kind of regulations need to be set, but weren't in agreement with staff's proposal.
Councilman Larry Helzel said one of the two spots shouldn't be reserved for a nonprofit when this demand may not exist.
"Just let it happen," he said.
Councilman Baird Gourlay agreed, but many questions still remain, such as whether the vendors should be charged rent to even the playing field with existing restaurants who bear the burden of overhead not seen with a vendor. Plus, when should this be started? This summer?
Councilman Curtis Kemp and Helzel said no, they'd rather wait.
And is having a business license enough to prove one has an established Ketchum business and can start a vending cart? Someone could obtain a catering license and then just operate their vending cart. The council wanted a more solid way of meeting this "established-Ketchum-business" requirement, but didn't agree on a method.
The council did, however, unanimously agree at the close of discussion that vending should be allowed and city staff needs to rework the resolution—with Councilwoman Nina Jonas and Gourlay sitting in to provide direction—before moving forward. Lisa Horowitz, Ketchum's director of community and economic planning, said the topic wouldn't return for the next meeting on Aug. 16, but would take more time.
Trevon Milliard: tmilliard@mtexpress.com
Leroy’s Ice Cream is currently the only food vendor allowed at Ketchum Town Square, but the city is planning to give space to two more food vendors. Photo by Willy Cook
