Expanded food truck rules win Elgin panel's nod but plans for food truck park stall

Chicago Tribune

08-07-2025

Proposals to allow food trucks to operate in downtown Elgin, on publicly owned property and in Wing Park are headed to the Elgin City Council for approval, but plans for a food truck park stalled at Monday's Planning and Zoning Commission meeting.
Food trucks currently are allowed on private property if the zoning allows for an eating establishment as a permitted use and the owner requests a temporary use permit, which typically lasts for 60 days, Community Development Director Marc Mylott said at the meeting.
Food trucks also are permitted at special events, like those held at downtown Festival Park, Mylott said.
Those rules would be widened under an amended ordinance so that food trucks that obtain a conditional use permit can operate on private property downtown and on public property like parks, Mylott said. Trucks would need to be within 400 feet of a business to apply for the conditional use, he said.
The applicant would need to provide access to restrooms, have a litter collection plan, and pass Elgin Public Health Department and Elgin Fire Department inspections, Mylott said.
Commissioners voted 4-0 to recommend the council approved the amended rules.
However, only one of two food truck-related projects passed muster with the commission at the same meeting.
The first, a food truck to be located next to the new Wing Park clubhouse, is proposed by the city's Parks and Recreation Department. It would be run by the same vendor being hired to operate a whiskey bar inside the clubhouse, construction of which is to start later this year, officials said. Menus for the indoor business and the food truck would be the same.
Commissioners recommended the council approve the plan but tabled One Eleven Holdings' request to permanently establish a food truck park at 215 DuPage St., where it's currently operating on a temporary basis under the name The Spot. A temporary permit granted by the city allows several trucks to serve food from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday to Sunday through October.
'We are running under that special use, and it's kind of a stress test we're doing,' said Germina 'Mina' Vega, who runs the business with her sister Yesenia Echevarria.
The Spot is located next to the residential Artspace Lofts on Spring Street.
Resident Nicole Prokop said she isn't a fan of the proposal because the food trucks have created problems in the few weeks they've been operating there.
While she loves the idea of a food truck park, which can offer diverse types of food and keep people shopping locally, 'I just don't think it's fair to have a food truck parked 25 feet from our building when (it causes) light pollution and noise pollution,' Prokop said.
But Krzysztof Nowicki, who owns trucks selling Polish food and desserts at The Spot, said he believes a food concept like this can bring people together.
'I know what it means to take a dream, put it on wheels, (then) work day and night to share it with the community,' Nowicki said. 'Trucks like mine often start with a single family, a single recipe, a single hope. We do not have corporate sponsors. What we have is a passion, a work ethic, and a deep desire to be part of something bigger. And a food truck park gives us that chance.'
Vega and Echevarria said they have taken neighbors' feedback seriously and reduced the number of trucks parked at The Spot. They're also willing to invest $20,000 to upgrade the electrical system so the trucks don't have to use generators, which produce noise, Vega said.
Echevarria's husband, Kevin, owns Dream Hall at 51 S. Grove Ave. He is listed on the application and provides the use of Dream Hall's restrooms for the food truck business.
But he is also a newly appointed Planning and Zoning Commission member. He recused himself from the discussions and votes related to the amendment and the Wing Park and The Spot applications.
Commissioner Karin Jones said it's unusual for the commission to hear a proposal from a fellow commissioner.
'It makes my stomach feel unsettled,' said Jones, who is a downtown business owner. 'It just doesn't feel great to me' that the commission appears to be 'passing a text amendment to accommodate an applicant,' she said.
Instead of voting on the request from The Spot, Jones made a motion — approved with a 3-1 vote — to table the application to get more information and gather additional feedback from residents and downtown businesses. Commissioner Nancy Abuali cast the only no vote on the motion.
The request will be discussed again at the commission's Aug. 4 meeting.