People in Scottsdale, Ariz. must really dislike ice cream trucks. A recent measure to lift the city's decades-old ban on street vendors was met with opposition from residents who expressed a dislike for food trucks and vendors of all kinds.
Street vendors were banned in Scottsdale in the 1970s amid fears they were selling illegal drugs. The proposed ordinance would allow mobile vendors along residential street, as long as they don't serve warm foods. The law, as it's written, would apply mostly to ice cream trucks.
The 15 residents who expressed their displeasure with the move -- which officials stress is not a "done deal" -- worried that the law could open the door for other types of food trucks in the neighborhood.
Safety was also a prime area of concern. AZCentral.com shares comments from one resident at a recent open house to discuss the law:
"The last thing I want is some guy going in an ice-cream truck up and down the same streets, knowing somebody is on vacation," said resident Art Lorenzen.
Lorenzen said he installed security measures at his house after a recent spate of crimes in his community.
"A guy driving an ice-cream truck is probably not the best-quality person," Lorenzen said. "I think that's one of my concerns, this guy driving slowly down the street, maybe not the first day or second day, but the third day, when they (residents) are on vacation."
Other residents expressed concern about children running across the street to reach the truck.
The Associated Press notes that Scottsdale is one of the few cities in the area that outlaws ice cream trucks. Supporters say it would bring back "fond memories of childhood," but with a catch: the proposal wouldn't allow trademark jingles.
According to The Arizona Republic, the proposed law came about when local teen Leo Blavin wrote Scottsdale Mayor Jim Lane after learning that his family's ice cream truck business would be illegal in Scottsdale. Blavin and his father now serve the Arcadia neighborhood in east Phoenix.
If passed, Lane says he will call the regulation "Leo's Law." Blavin, who was raised in Scottsdale, told the Republic that he recalled growing up "and never seeing an ice cream truck."