Could ice cream trucks, and their trademark jingles, be driving into Orillia neighbourhoods in the near future?
Coun. Jeff Czetwerzuk brought forward an inquiry at Monday’s council meeting, requesting city staff to prepare a report on the feasibility of allowing the trucks to operate in residential areas. They are currently banned.
“I brought this forward today because of the support I've heard from the constituents for the return of ice cream trucks,” Czetwerzuk said. “It's also been brought to my attention that ice cream trucks are still currently running in Orillia, even though they're not permitted, and this was a concern as it does not allow for the safety concerns to be addressed or managed.”
With safety concerns in mind, Coun. Jay Fallis proposed an amendment that would see city staff investigate safety options for the trucks, which was ultimately voted down by council, but Coun. David Campbell noted the requested report should “do the trick” on addressing safety.
Coun. Ralph Cipolla took a strong stance against permitting the trucks, highlighting safety and environmental concerns, as well as the fact there are many places to buy ice cream in Orillia already.
“I think the safety of our children is the most important, but I also think of the environment. These trucks have to be running all the time in order to keep the ice cream refrigerated,” he said.
“The other thing is … the OPP didn't support it last time (this was requested) and they don't now," said the Ward 2 councillor.
“I don't support this one hundred per cent. I will not support trucks being on residential streets for the safety of our children, and for the environment. It's not appropriate,” Cipolla said.
Coun. Whitney Smith, however, disagreed with Cipolla’s concerns, and added ice cream trucks might be permitted to run only in areas without other ice cream businesses.
“I mean, our buses run all day long and also cause emissions, so I don't think an ice cream truck is going to be an issue when it comes to global warming. I support the ice cream trucks,” she said.
“If we have vendors that are in certain parks, maybe we say to the ice cream trucks, ‘Hey, don't go in this park or this park, but you can go through all the residential roads'," she suggested.
This is not the first time a city council member has brought forward the idea, said Coun. Tim Lauer, who suggested Czetwerzuk draft his own report on the matter as opposed to requesting city staff do the work on another.
“It's like Groundhog Day for me. I think I've seen this one three or four times,” Lauer said. “I wonder if a better, more effective way to deal with this would simply be to … pull that (previous) report and come forward with a report with all these questions you guys have found … and it can be dealt with at a different time.”
However, both Czetwerzuk and Fallis successfully argued it would be best for city staff, with their expertise, to draft the report.
