JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A popular food truck park in North Jacksonville is days away from shutting down.
Trout River Food Truck Park on Lem Turner Road has served not just meals — but a community — in an area with few fresh food options. But after years of code violations, the park is shutting down Aug. 8, leaving both vendors and neighbors wondering what comes next.
Among those impacted is Chef Love. She’s operated her soul food truck here for two years.
She said the park has been vital, not just for her business, but for the people who live nearby, as she estimates about 15 to 20% of customers typically walk or ride a bike to grab a meal at the food truck park.
“This community here, they love us over here,” Love said. “This is like a food desert area. You have Dollar Generals, you have Family Dollar. That’s not places where you can get food or groceries, obviously. So they need a place where they can come, where they can get a whole meal.”
Some customers drive long distances just to support the vendors at the beloved food truck park, like Blake Austin-Boatswain.
“I’m definitely a supporter of the small businesses, and I love the fact of coming somewhere that is family owned and somebody who’s put their dreams and passion into their trucks, it really says something to me and makes me want to spend a lot more money with them show love when I know that,” Austin-Boatswain said.
RELATED | Jacksonville City Council passes bill to prohibit food trucks at gas stations
On Wednesday, park owner Robert Germano met with code enforcement and other city officials. But he said no agreement was reached.
“I put so much into this,” Germano said. “I feel bad, you know, with for these food trucks, what are they going to do? Where are they going to go? You know? And then, of course, the locals that eat here, where are they going to go?”
News4JAX reached out to the city for comment and said the park has received over 10 violations, which include unpermitted electrical and plumbing, improper wastewater disposal, unmaintained parking lot and no proper hand-washing stations.
“I know one of the outcomes of the meeting was that Councilman Gaffney Jr. was going to be working with folks in the community to try to find someone else to reopen it in the near future,” Phil Perry, with the City of Jacksonville, told News4JAX.
Germano said he doesn’t think there’s a possibility the park will remain open.
“No, and I hate that. I absolutely hate that because I’ve invested over $60,000. My partners have invested over $60,000, and I, you know, this was my pride and joy,” Germano said. “It’s a feeling, you know, that kind of... gets you in the gut, because I’ve done everything.”
Perry said Mayor Donna Deegan allocated $300,000 in her proposed budget to address food access needs across the city.
