Beaverton Allows Food Cart Pods to Exist And What It Means For Your Stomach

Beaverton will end its long-debated ban on food cart pods this September. Previously, the city stipulated that Beaverton food carts could 1) only stay in one location for seven hours max and 2) only operate alone, without fellow food carts nearby. This week, the Beaverton City Council announced by press release that those days are over. Beavertonians will eventually be able to get street-side shawarma, tacos, and pad thai all in one place just like everyone else.

What does this mean for your stomach right now? It means things are about to get real. All of the cheap eats and food-cart creativity are indeed on their way. Gone will be the days of the vagabond food cart quietly standing in the sidewalk shadows until its time is up. Gone will be its quiet, lonely exit to yet another lonely street. But not yet.

The Portland Tribune points out, "Don’t expect the first food cart pod to spring up immediately." Mid-September marks when Beaverton property owners can begin the application process to host food carts. Exactly how quickly the locations and carts can get up and running to serve you food is unclear, but it's likely that you can expect full-fledged food cart pods to form in the coming months.

Here are the additional rules for food cart pods supplied in the city's press release:

Pods must be located on asphalt or concrete surface for sanitation and access purposes

Food cart pods that provide seating must provide access to restrooms on site or on an adjacent parcel

Structures for customer use must remain under 200 square feet and 15 feet in height

Pods must be setback at least 20 feet from residential zoning districts

A minimum of one parking space per cart is required in commercial and office industrial zones. There are no parking minimums for food cart pods in multiple use zones

Potable and wastewater connections must meet state plumbing code

Carts must use electrical hookups, no generators

All utilities must be located underground