The Burger Bus mobile food truck is hitting the road Saturday after the Solstice Parade.
Owner Michael Gardner told Noozhawk that Santa Barbara isn’t business friendly so he has decided to pick up and move to Colorado with his wife and daughter.
“This city has become an enclave for the rich and the wealthy,” Gardner said.
“The city doesn’t support small businesses. The city of Santa Barbara just wants to see everybody walking down State Street with a Bloomingdale’s bag in their hand.”
Gardner said the city is cracking down on food trucks, over-regulating where they park and operating hours because “they are afraid this would become Los Angeles.”
The rules have basically made it impossible to run a food truck business, he said. A draft city ordinance, geared toward protecting public safety, proposes that vehicles may not stand or park at a single location for more than 60 minutes. If a food truck operator moves to a new spot within 500 feet, it is considered the same location.
Food trucks would not be allowed within 500 feet of a school.
The city has also proposed rules restricting food truck parking on private property, such as prohibiting trucks from parking or standing for more than three hours, and prohibiting mobile food vendors from being onsite for more than 90 days total within any 12-month period.
Gardner said he’s putting his bus on a flatbed and taking it with him to Colorado, where the Burger Bus will live again. He said he couldn’t sell his truck or business in Santa Barbara because of the regulations.
“They have managed to run this place into the toilet,” Gardner said. “Tourism is the only thing they care about.”
Ken Oplinger, president and CEO of The Chamber of the Santa Barbara Region, said he empathizes with the Burger Bus owner.
“I am not sure why we can’t find a way to work it out for everyone,” Oplinger said. “I think it is unfortunate that a business is leaving because they can’t make it a go here.”
Oplinger said food trucks are popular all over the state and cities often embrace them, rather than fight them.
“We should actively be figuring out a way to accommodate these types of businesses,” he said.
Oplinger said he understands why some restaurants might have concerns about the food trucks.
“Part of the thing is that just like with vacation rentals and hotels, most restaurants would say competition isn’t bad as long as competition is fair,” he said. “It’s not necessarily fair for a food truck to open up a block away from an existing restaurant.”
Still, he said, there are plenty of examples of food trucks working in a community. He said The Pacific View Mall in Ventura stages a food truck night once a month to embrace the interest in the food.
The Burger Bus, which has been in business for the past eight years, set up for its final Friday at the Ace Hardware Store in Santa Barbara.
Patrons were crushed to learn the news that the mobile food truck was leaving town, and a steady line of hungry people ordered food.
“I will definitely miss them being here,” said Safa Scott, who ordered a cheeseburger with jalapeños and fries. He said he agrees that Santa Barbara is not as business friendly as it used to be.
“State Street used to be a very community-based street,” he said. “Now, it’s just corporate.”
He said the proof that the Burger Bus belongs is in the pudding, so to speak.
“The people are the most important thing,” he said. “If people are coming, that’s what matters. It doesn’t matter what some people inside a building at City Hall think.”
Armando Villegas said he eats at the Burger Bus often.
“It’s gonna be sad,” he said, while picking up his lunch order. “The Burger Bus is convenient for everyone. They have the best burgers in town.”
— Noozhawk staff writer Joshua Molina can be reached at jmolina@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
