Food truck seeks annual fee in Princeville

By NICK VLAHOS
For The Weekly Post

PRINCEVILLE – The owners of a food truck would like to park in Princeville on a regular basis. But paying $50 to do so each visit isn’t practical for them.

That’s why Top That co-owner Jenni Davis asked the Princeville Village Board to consider implementing an annual fee for vendor licenses. Other communities have such a fee. It would allow food trucks and similar mobile businesses to operate in Princeville more regularly, Davis suggested.

“If you could come up with something, we would love to work that out and serve your area,” she told the board at its March 5 meeting.

Davis and husband Bob Davis own Top That, based in Toulon. The truck specializes in topping macaroni, nacho and potato bases with variations of chili, hamburger, chicken and taco meat. Bowls, sandwiches and salads also are available.

Top That was expected to make its Princeville debut earlier this week. Jenni Davis said she would like to return every other week, probably on Mondays, and perhaps operate next to Stevens Square Park.

Vendors are charged $50 daily to operate in Princeville. Business hours are between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.

“We have had many, many people request us to come to your village and bring our food. … But 50 dollars a time that many times, that’s going to be beyond what we can do,” Davis said.

Members of the board’s license committee plan to discuss the issue March 19.

Another board subdivision, the property committee, met before the regular meeting last week to discuss ongoing efforts to allow a nascent local not-for-profit group to take over the shuttered Princeville Aquatic Center.

Committee Chairman Donald Peterson Jr. said the group needs to establish itself formally, including a name, for the board to consider donating the aquatic center. The village will need to craft an ordinance that states it will retake possession of the facility should the not-for-profit effort fail.

“It’s a slow process,” Peterson said.

Earlier this year, the board agreed to wait until mid-June to determine the future of the aquatic center. The delay is intended to give the save-the-pool group time to explore options. If reopening the facility under non-village oversight isn’t possible, demolition is likely.

In other business, the board approved two changes regarding code violations. One allows the village to assess daily fines for property-maintenance violations, ranging from $100 to $750. The other offers owners of inoperable or abandoned vehicles a chance for a local hearing rather than a court case.

A typical property-maintenance violation warranted a one-time fine of $100, according to Dan Sullivan, the village code-enforcement officer. The village attorney suggested the fine was too low.

“You’re going to take them to court and you’re only going to fine them 100 bucks? That’s not even going to pay for my time, let alone the attorney’s time,” Sullivan said. “If you’re going to fine 100 dollars a day, someone’s more likely going to comply instead of, ‘I’m just going to get fined 100 dollars, who cares?’”

The board also authorized a $1,000 donation to Princeville Little League and a $34,906 deal with Yemm Auto Group of Galesburg for a 2021 GMC Sierra 1500 pickup truck for public-works use.

A village building permit was issued for a privacy fence at a residence at 103 N. Cottage Grove Ave.