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Food Trucks in NH

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In April, the Portsmouth Parking and Traffic Safety Committee rejected a proposal to expand a food truck program.

Food trucks are mobile kitchens built into trucks, vans or trailers, where food is cooked to order. New Hampshire law requires food trucks to meet the same health and safety standards as stationary restaurants.

However, getting a state license is only the first hurdle for food truck operators. Finding a legal time and place to operate within town or city limits often poses a bigger challenge.

Several New Hampshire cities and towns have experimented with food trucks, usually with strict limits on where the trucks can park or what hours they can operate.

Supporters of regulations that encourage food trucks argue that they can help to create lively, vibrant downtown communities, noting that they are particularly popular with millennials and young professionals—demographics New Hampshire is eager to attract to offset an otherwise aging population. They argue that towns should create more food-truck friendly ordinances, allowing them to operate during regular restaurant hours and to park in public parking spaces.

However, opponents express concerns that food trucks encourage noise issues, fights, public intoxication and traffic congestion. They worry about the impact food trucks could have on other restaurants or local businesses, disrupting pedestrian flow or even posing a safety risk if lines of patrons extend into the street.

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