Columbia City Council passed an ordinance at Monday night's meeting that will grant food trucks specific parking locations downtown. The spots include eight metered spaces on the south side of Cherry and Locust streets and 10 spaces on the north side of Walnut Street.
Carrie Gartner, executive director of the Downtown Community Improvement district, said the new location for these food trucks could benefit all parties.
"Having food trucks in locations that aren't directly in front of a restaurant or a retail location, they're in separate areas which is a great way to enliven areas that may not have a commercial core," she said.
Bryan Maness, the owner of Ozarks Biscuit Company, said he thinks this could be the start of a new trend in Columbia.
"We are trying to help establish a kind of food truck culture in Columbia and part of doing that is increasing awareness, there are options for mobile food and street food in Columbia, so allowing us to vend on public streets is going to the increase exposure," he said.
In order to use these spots vendors will have to cover the chosen parking meter with a bag. The daily fee for a bag is $10.