Newport News, Va. - It's lunchtime outside the Newport News Shipyard, and that means the food trucks’ lines are long.
“If it weren`t for them, a lot of us wouldn`t have anywhere to get lunch,” says a customer.
But starting September 1st, the go-to lunch spots will have to pay an extra $500 for a permit if they want to stick around. It's part of a new regulation city council approved Tuesday night.
Willie Gilliams, who parks his truck about a half mile down the street from the shipyard, isn't happy about the increased cost.
“I really do think it`s a cheap shot to me, disrespect because for us to go and pay these extra fees per year, we might as well have a storefront,” says Gilliams.
Truck vendors will have to pay $500 and sidewalk vendors, $150. In return, they'll have a designated spot to park.
“That`s not really big because I get up early every morning and get out here early enough to make sure that I get a spot, so to pay for that, that`s something I could do without,” says Gilliams.
And there's more--the vendors' insurance requirement is going from $100,000 to $1 million per incident.
The city hasn't yet said whether there will be a limit on the number of permits, but either way, Gilliam tells NewsChannel 3 he's willing to pay the extra $500, even though he doesn't think it's fair.
“The city`s always gonna make money, no matter where you go. This is the city I live in and have been in for all my life, so we know that the city is gonna get their`s, nothing we can do about that,” says Giliams.
