Norwood Food Truck Ban Letter

Food trucks are great for communities. They create jobs, improve public safety, revitalize underused areas, and generate revenue for municipalities. Yet, some jurisdictions, like Norwood, Ohio, try to restrict, or ban, vendors and their food trucks from operating within city limits.

In Norwood’s case, city leaders are discussing the possibility of banning property owners from inviting food trucks onto their private land. However, any such ban could violate both the Ohio and U.S. Constitutions. Ohio state courts have a long history of ruling that unreasonable restrictions on competition violate the Ohio Constitution. Additionally, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that restricting one type of business to protect another—also known as economic protectionism—violates the U.S. Constitution.

Moreover, IJ has established through more than a decade of research that food trucks positively impact local communities and their economies. In two separate studies from 2011 and 2012, for instance, IJ found that food trucks can help create jobs, improve public safety, and revitalize underused public spaces. Another IJ study concluded that growth in the number of food trucks often goes hand in hand with growth in the brick-and-mortar restaurant industry.

That’s why the Institute for Justice (IJ) sent a letter to city officials in Norwood, calling on them to cease efforts to ban private property owners from inviting food trucks onto their properties. Food trucks make communications safer and help lift local economies. If private property owners want to invite food trucks onto their properties, city leaders should celebrate that, not ban it.