This chapter shall be known and referred to as the "Hanover Borough Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle Ordinance."
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough of Hanover 3-25-2026 by Ord. No. 2386.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance was adopted as Chapter 371 but was renumbered to maintain the organization of the Code.
The purpose of this chapter is to regulate the location and hours of operation that a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle is permitted to operate within the Borough of Hanover and to provide the process for enforcement action for any violation(s) of this chapter. This chapter is also intended to promote public safety, prevent traffic congestion, and maintain aesthetic and commercial harmony in the Borough of Hanover.
As used in this chapter, the following terms are hereby given the meanings set forth below:
A Person applying to the Borough to conduct a Temporary Event and/or to operate as a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle.
Hanover Borough, York County, Pennsylvania.
A facility to which a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle returns daily for such things as vehicle and equipment cleaning, discharging liquid or solid waste, refilling water tanks and ice bins, and where food is kept, handled, prepared, packaged, or stored. This may not be a private residence and if located on a residential property must be completely separated from personal use areas.
Any trailer, cart, or motorized vehicle, and associated equipment, used to prepare and/or distribute food or beverages by a Mobile Food Vendor. This term shall not include the delivery of preordered, prepared food or beverages from an approved restaurant or catering location, or its representatives, to a specific Person.
Any Person who operates a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle for the purpose of retail sales.
A permit issued by the Borough of Hanover that authorizes a Person to operate as a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle within the Borough.
Any individual, partnership, company, association, society, trust, corporation, or other legal or commercial group or entity, whether public or private, including any such employee of the same.
All property that is not Public Property.
The public right-of-way, Borough owned property and the Borough established right-of-way, including sidewalks.
An event held on Private or Public Property, for a specific time limit only. Temporary events may last up to two consecutive days. Private Property may not have more than six temporary events within a calendar year.
A.
No Person shall operate as a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle in the Borough or on Public Private or Private Property within the Borough or on Borough owned property without a valid Permit issued by the Borough.
B.
A separate Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle Permit is required for each mobile food truck, cart or trailer operated within the Borough.
C.
Any Person wishing to obtain a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle Permit must apply via the electronic permitting platform on Borough's website. Applications are reviewed and approved/denied by the Department of Code Enforcement and must include all required information requested by the Borough.
D.
Applicants shall provide proof of valid Pennsylvania State Motor Vehicle Registration as well as a valid Pennsylvania State Motor Vehicle Inspection to the Borough. Registrations and inspections from other states may be acceptable at the discretion of the Chief of Department of Code Enforcement.
E.
The Borough requires Applicants to provide proof of a valid Pennsylvania State Department of Agriculture License prior to being issued a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle Permit. Additionally, proof of Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Food Safety Certifications and Inspections as well as SERV Safe Certifications for the Mobile Food Vendor in charge shall be required.
F.
The Borough's Department of Code Enforcement shall issue a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle Permit to the Applicant upon receipt of a completed application and the Applicant's mobile food truck, cart and/or trailer passing an initial inspection. Permits shall be valid for no more than one calendar year and will expire on March 31st of the following year.
G.
The Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle Permit fee, as set by the Borough Council, shall be paid at the time of the issuance of the Permit. Administrative fee(s) will apply to all applications that are denied and/or incomplete.
A.
All Mobile Food Preparation Vehicles shall be located outside of all designated fire lanes.
B.
All Mobile Food Preparation Vehicles shall not impede emergency vehicles. If impediment is determined by an official of the Department of Code Enforcement, the Hanover Area Fire and Rescue Commission, or the Hanover Borough Police, the Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle must be moved immediately. Failure to move the Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle to an approved location will result in immediate revocation of the Permit.
D.
A Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle shall be maintained in good operating order.
E.
A Mobile Food Vendor may operate on Public Property with the following additional regulations:
(1)
The Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle shall not be parked within 25 feet of any intersection and/or driveway entrance.
(2)
A Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle shall not be parked on a public street within a neighborhood that is residentially zoned, except that a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle may park directly in front of a permitted, non-residential use within a residential district, including, but not limited to, a school, place of worship, or community center.
(3)
When operating on Public Property, a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle is subject to all parking ordinances, laws, rules, restrictions, and obligations.
F.
A Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle shall be parked so that its service window faces a sidewalk or other safe pedestrian area.
G.
Mobile Food Vendors shall provide a waste receptable for customers which is clearly marked. The disposal of waste produced by the Mobile Food Vendor's operation is the responsibility of the Mobile Food Vendor and all waste must be removed from the site and disposed of at its commissary or other approved location.
H.
The Mobile Food Vendor is responsible for the pickup, removal, and disposal of all refuse within 25 feet of the vendor's operating area at the conclusion of service.
I.
A Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle shall not be located on the same Private or Public Property, or within 100 feet of the same location, for more than 120 hours in a single day. The only exception to this is if the Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle is located within the boundaries of an approved and permitted Temporary Event. The Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle may remain in place for the duration of the approved and permitted Temporary Event but may not operate beyond the hours of the Temporary Event and must remove its vehicle within 12 hours of the conclusion of the event.
J.
All Mobile Food Preparation Vehicles operating within a residentially zoned district shall not begin operations before 8:00 a.m. each day and shall end by 8:00 p.m. each day.
K.
At all times, at least one Mobile Food Vendor at the Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle site must hold a current food safety certification issued under the Food Employee Certification Act.
L.
Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle are limited to signs attached to the vehicle and one sandwich board no larger than six square feet per side. The sandwich board sign shall not block pedestrians or vehicular traffic, nor may it be placed within the designated fire lane. All sandwich board signs must be located within 10 feet of the Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle.
M.
A copy of the Permit, as well as PA State Health Certifications, shall be prominently displayed while the Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle is in operation.
N.
No Mobile Food Vendors will provide or allow any dining area, including but not limited to tables, chairs, booths, bar stools, benches, and stand-up counters.
O.
Subject to the Borough of Hanover Zoning Ordinance and other applicable laws and ordinances, Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle are permitted to park and serve customers on Private Property with the express written consent of the property owner and such written consent is maintained in the Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle.
Q.
A Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle may not operate on property owned by the Borough unless the Department of Code Enforcement has granted approval of the permit application for its operations at a particular location during specific times.
A.
Inspections of Mobile Food Preparation Vehicles shall be conducted by the Department of Code Enforcement and/or the Hanover Area Fire and Rescue Commission and shall follow the approved checklist for health and safety standards as approved by the Department of Code Enforcement.
B.
Mobile Food Preparation Vehicles will be inspected for compliance with the Fire Code of the Borough of Hanover as well as all applicable State and Borough Ordinances.
C.
A Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle shall be inspected upon receipt of an approved permit. The Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle shall be brought to the Borough Municipal Office or other designated sites as posted by the Department of Code Enforcement for its inspection. The Applicant is responsible for contacting the Department of Code Enforcement to arrange for an inspection, location, and time.
D.
The Department of Code Enforcement and/or the Hanover Area Fire and Rescue Commission may conduct compliance inspections of any Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle operating within the Borough limits or on Borough property.
E.
The Department of Code Enforcement shall establish and maintain a database to record the names of Applicant, inspections, inspection reports, and public complaints.
F.
If an application fails an initial inspection and/or other inspection, a reinspection fee, as established by the Borough Council, will be charged.
All fees associated with the Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle Permit and inspection(s) of a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle will be established yearly by Resolution by the Borough Council as set forth in the Borough of Hanover Schedule of Fees.[1]
A.
Transfers "for value" are prohibited. No Person holding a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle Permit shall sell, lend, lease, or in any manner transfer a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle Permit for value.
B.
Transfers "not for value," included as part of the sale of a business, are permitted as part of the sale of a majority of the stock in a corporation holding such permits, as part of the sale of the majority of the membership interest of the limited liability company holding such permit, or as part of the sale of a business or substantially all of its assets, provided that there shall be no allocated or actual value for the transfer of the permit.
(1)
Prior to any such transfer, the transferor shall notify the Department of Code Enforcement in writing, and the transferee shall submit a Mobile Food Preparation Vehicle Permit application for approval to the Department of Code Enforcement pursuant to the process established under § 371-5.
(2)
Any such transfer shall be subject to the terms and conditions of the original Permit.
The Department of Code Enforcement is hereby authorized to suspend or revoke any Permit issued under this part when it deems such suspension or revocation to be beneficial to the public health, safety or welfare, for violation of any provision of this part, or for giving false information upon any application for a Permit hereunder. Appeals from any suspension or revocation may be made to the Borough Council to be heard at a Designated Appeals Hearing within 30 days of the filing of the Appeal. No part of a Permit fee shall be refunded to any Person whose license shall have been suspended or revoked.
Any Person or property owner who shall violate any provision of this chapter, upon conviction thereof in an action brought before a Magisterial District Judge in the manner provided for the enforcement of summary offenses under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, as may be amended from time to time, and shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than $150 nor more than $1,000, together with reasonable court costs and attorney fees incurred by the Borough of Hanover in prosecution of the violation. Any Person who fails to pay the fines, court costs, and attorney fees within 30 days of the imposition thereof may be subject to imprisonment for a period of time not to exceed 15 days.