Peeling the Onion
Someone has got to do it…. and I like onions.
In a dark parking lot, surrounded by chaos, I filed my first story on the raid of the inaugural H&8th outdoor food market in MidTown. I took my best shot at it, with what few resources I had (I went out for a taco, and had neither a camera, notebook or pen). The story blew out all readership numbers throughout the weekend at NewsOK. And I initially was hit with demands for a retraction by representatives of the ABLE Commission, who at first argued there were only a handful of people involved in the raid and that they had no part in it (they have since backed off from both claims). Organizers weren’t completely forthright with me either – it took them until Saturday to fess up they chose to hold the event without the outdoor permit.
My first in-depth look at what went wrong Friday night is now online. I spent all weekend working on it. Yep. I even missed listening to part of my beloved Casey Kasem 70s AT 40 show. I love that show. But the phone kept on ringing. It started ringing Saturday morning and never stopped.
So we’re cutting into the sucker, and what do we find? We find organizers of H&8th who didn’t get everything figured out before they delved into this event. We find food trucks that thought they had all permits and details taken care of – and in some cases they might not have done anything wrong. We find a “swat team” as one person observed, of 27 people, descending on this event and choosing not to contact organizers instead.
But there are a lot of questions, more fundamental issues, I’m about to tackle. Questions about fairness. Questions about whether an emerging industry is being stomped on in an inequitable manner, and if so, for what purpose? I’ve got questions about what seems to me to be a Byzantine set of rules and requirements that any one of us would probably get wrong. And my questions keep going back to my very first thought: is this how we would respond if we were in that position of authority? Would we choose the surprise attack? Or would we contact the organizers and advise them they might not have taken care of all details, and try to see if they can be helped to overcome such oversights?
Did 27 people need to spend two hours out at H&8th? Or could one person have helped guide these event organizers toward either canceling and delaying the party or addressing fundamental problems in time to let plans proceed?
This was an in-depth effort. Reality dictates not everything will make it into print. First, a couple of items that got cut from the print story:
- City Manager Jim Couch, who attended the market, said he was unaware of the raid when it started, but did notice high-point beer was being sold from the COOP trailer and a lack of trash cans. He also wondered why the operator of Hugo’s was cooking fajitas without any refrigerator visible.
“My impression as ‘hmmm… maybe we should have had more planning on this,’” Couch said. “But I’m not saying we should use Gestapo type tactics. I feel bad for those guys. I was looking for a fun night.”
- Dr. Gary Cox, director of the Oklahoma City/County Health Department, said his agency is using the controversy as a means to see whether improvements can be made in responding to special events and educating food truck operators. “We’re looking at changes as a result of this incident,” Cox said. “We’re reliant on education. We’re not heavy-handed enforcers. One thing we want all these mobile vendors to do is get together and show them all the regulations and work on creating a better situation for the future.”
TIMELINE OF THE CONTROVERSY:
TIMELINE
With so much in dispute about the raid of the H&8th outdoor food market Friday night, all involved sides agreed they read a story previewing the event earlier that day in The Oklahoman.
Officials with ABLE, the Oklahoma City/County Health Department, and Oklahoma City inspectors all verified Monday they weren’t aware of the event until after they read the story.
Organizers Laura Massenat, Jonathan Stranger and J.D. Merryweather say they started planning the event in July. Stranger visited with the ABLE Commission on Wednesday and believed he had obtained all required permits and was cleared to sell alcohol at the event.
Operators of the Big Truck Taco and Munchbox food trucks both said they applied for required permits and also believed they had cleared all hurdles (efforts to reach operators of the Hugo’s food stand were unsuccessful on Monday).
Massenat said her staff reviewed required permits by both Big Truck and the Munchbox, but not Hugo’s, before the event starting at 8 p.m. Friday.
That day Massenat learned she was rejected for one permit required for outdoor events. She chose to proceed with the event despite lacking the permit.
Records show city inspectors began voicing concerns about the market at 9 a.m. after seeing the newspaper story. Sometime that day, inspectors with the health department saw the story and agreed to add the market to their previously-planned sweep of food trucks in south Oklahoma City.
Agents with the ABLE Commission also decided to inspect the market and Ludivine after seeing the story. Neither the ABLE Commission, health department or city inspectors notified H&8th organizers about their concerns.
ABLE agents arrive with police shortly after the event starts at 8 p.m. Health department inspectors arrive with city inspectors about 8:20 p.m.
Tommy Hand, director of mobile events at Big Truck Tacos, is told by city inspectors that he bought the wrong mobile food truck permit from the city. Shane Mutz, owner of the Munchbox, is told by the fire inspector he is not allowed to use an extension cord to power his vehicle. Mutz reports when he unplugs the cord, he asks if he can retrieve his power generator but is told by health inspectors his vehicle lacks functioning electricity and refrigeration.
Health inspectors report Hugo’s is shut down for lacking screening for his trailer.
ABLE agents move on to nearby Ludivine and cite it for having a box of wine stored outside the restaurant’s hallway. They also discover the bartender’s license had expired four days earlier — a license the bartender promptly renews.
By 9 p.m. the raid is complete and the market is shut down.
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Comments
We went rigth around 8:25 and enjoyed our few minutes there. I kept asking my partner who all the people were in the blue shirts. They were everywhere. A LOT of them. We purchased coffee at Elemental then left. We were totally unaware of the raid.
I’m all for the proper permits and stuff, but I sure hope this can get off the ground. Seems like good intentions and building community should count for something.
What is the estimate of how many people (customers) chose to forgo eating in Bricktown to support other food ventures in town?
It’s not Bricktown behind this effort if that’s what you’re thinking (others have implied such). I’ve observed firsthand how Bricktown has become a toothless tiger. They don’t have the pull they once did, perhaps to their detriment. Jim Brewer is dead. Jim Cowan is working at the Greens Country Club. What’s left is the former marketing person for Penn Square Mall leading the Bricktown Association. Nice lady. But she’s not Cowan, Brewer, or anything close to what Bricktown had fighting in the political ring in years past.
I have a hard time believing that the health and able teams had no contact with each other beforehand.
We know the city was in contact with ABLE before the raid. We know the city was in contact with the health department before the raid….
“That day Massenat learned she was rejected for one permit required for outdoor events. She chose to proceed with the event despite lacking the permit.”
Ummm…
Yep. As I said on Twitter earlier… perhaps not the finest moment for folks on both sides? At the end of the day, this may just be a flash point of a much bigger problem hidden … until now.
A food truck operating its refrigerator with an extension cord may not sound all that bad. But I wonder how long it was traveling in 100+ degree temperatures without refrigeration. That could be very dangerous. There need to be regulations and there needs to be oversight.
Hey, Steve, thanks for working on this. You and I had a five minute conversation on Friday night that did not include discussion on the permitting process. I posted to Elemental Facebook the same evening that I did not have an outdoor sellers permit. When we talked on Saturday, I shared that information with you. As I mentioned, multiple city employees shared with me that, as long as a truck didn’t regularly park in the same lot, the truck was not at risk for being asked to move or being cited. If I had thought I was putting the vendors at risk, I would have cancelled the event.
Steve, I read your article this morning. Thank you.
It says that the permit required C-4 commercial zoning. All of the micro zoning areas were dropped years ago around downtown. Elemental rests in DBD zoning and it doesn’t get any more commercial than that (same zoning as Devon Tower and Arts Festival). Will they be able to continue?
Thanks Laura. In trying to put together this very complicated story, there is a lot of information I’ve got to report from a lot of different sources. We’ll talk more about what city employees told you. More coverage is coming.
Steve it sounds like you had a group of folks that tried to comply but were not as deligent as they thought they were or should have been. On the other side you had the inspectors arrive. Keeping cold food cold and hot food hot is a no brainer in food service and one of the first things the inspectors check.
I hope this can be a learning experience moving forward and that folks will live and learn.
I’ve read all of this, and it sounds to me like they (event organizers & trucks) went off half cocked, and the Health Dept and ABLE did what they always do when they are caught off guard, they say no, and make it stop, whatever it is. I’m not sure there is a deep conspiracy because I can’t figure out who would be behind it. Land guys? This is a gnat at their picnic. Restaurant people? They are too busy keeping heinys in the seats and people happy. Nope, as I sit here thinking, this feels like two predictable things happening at the same time that predictably turned into a FUBAR moment for the city. Big Truck should have been allowed to continue. They obviously did what the understood to be right and bought a special license and they were OK with the heath department. That the coffee shop owner (BTW, No food/alcohol service in a coffee shop, so she has zero clue about compliance for serving) thought she could just round up some trucks, tell a bunch of people and throw a big street party selling food and alcohol is precious. It takes some ignorance or some serious naivete to think you can get away with something like that without jumping through very many multiple hoops over at LEAST 6 months over three or four layers of government. Next time, in the spring, they can do it right and it will be a big success.
The important takeaway from all this is that the tyranny of licensure is alive and well.
I have to admit, it surprises me. In an era of budget constraints and austerity – 27 (!) people from multiple agencies came out to shut down a food fair. Wow. In era when so many economies are struggling, ours has a small pool of brave, talented small business owners that are willing to take financial risk and open up restaurants in former dead zones of city – and they get the smack down for not having their papers in order. Again, wow.
If our city were truly as business friendly as its rhetoric routinely boasts, the agencies responsible would have taken a much more humanistic approach in this instance – dealing with the issues they were well aware of before the event, and viewing themselves in an educational and facilitative role, and not just as code enforcers.
I hope these agencies enjoyed the theater they created. And I’m sure we can all rest a little easier knowing their no tolerance posture will snuff out any similar bit of fun we may dare to envision in the future.
[...] food market against critics who say the enforcement was selective and heavy-handed. Steve Lackmeyer provides more details on the story at the OKC Central blog. The OK Policy Blog features a video of Director David Blatt breaking down [...]
Once this all settles, (next month I hope), I believe this is going to be one of the best things to happen for outdoor events and food vendors. Lots of lessons to be learned here on all sides.
Steve, great job as always, keep it up.
Part of me thinks that this event might have been a good thing because it will serve as a learning experience for both sides. Everyone can move forward and then the rest of OKC can enjoy the different kinds of foods that the trucks can offer.
The other side agrees with Michael Heaton. It really irritates me that there are 27 state employees shutting down food these entreprenuers! How about trying to make this as easy as possible for the vendors? This can really improve the culture in the city with little to no cost to the city. They shut down streets in San Francisco for food fairs like this and people love it.
Live and learn I guess…
I stand with Michael Heaton on this – excessive regulation is contrary to serving the people, their interests or safety. It appears that the organizers sought the permits, were rebuffed (likely on a technicality), took the risk of proceedig with the event, and lost. They may have been in within the sprit of the law, but not the letter.
Neither side came out looking good. Lesson learned, I hope.
Great job Steve. I’m interested in knowing how many citations the 16 health inspectors issued that night after they “fanned out.”
Maybe the authorities should have handled this event in the same way they handled the issues in the lead-up to the Oklahoma Craft Beer Festival. If memory serves me correctly, the OCBF organizers were told the day of the event they didn’t have the right permits. The difference was that the ABLE officials or city officials worked with them to get the correct permits and allow the event to go on as planned. This situation reeks of government overreach, poor planning on the organizers behalf, and jealous local competition.
I hope this is selling you a bunch of papers. Does anyone notice that you don’t see any of the vendors talking. They know that the Oklahoma City County Health Inspectors are in general the nicest and most helpful bunch you could find. Not at all like Tulsa and Cleveland county. My relatives were shut down on the South side of OKC that night but they knew what they were doing was wrong and the inspectors explained very nicely what they needed. The inspectors give seminars frequently to mobile vendors on the south side at the Chamber of Commerce to keep everyone informed. I know that they also were out late at night at least twice last year because I sometimes help out in the mobile. I think that some yuppies got their feelings hurt and now you (Steve) are kind of embarrassed since you found out that the originators were lieing to you. What else are they lieing about? So you are planning to smear the OKC Health department in the name of sales?
You know that when you are caught speeding the police have the option of warning you, ticketing you, or taking you to jail on the spot. The city and the OKC Health could have given these vendors at the event a citation which would have cost them 1200 dollars and they would not have been wrong. When you do wrong knowingly or otherwise you expose yourself to penalties you may not have any control over. I know they can do this because they wrote some on the South side of town that night.
The organizers CHOOSE to break the law–end of story and should of been the end of your story. You and the other yuppies need to get over it and let these good people do their jobs.
The Health Dept would be well advised to read this:
http://mashable.com/2010/08/30/social-media-attacks-brand/
Ashley, I wasn’t going to say this, but since you’re calling folks names and claiming I’m embarrassed (I’m not), but here goes … your comments about the Hispanic Chamber, food truck operators loving the health inspectors, etc., are at times a word for word reiteration of what the health department’s spokeswoman told me today. Just sayin’…
Is this the first indication that someone else in another part of town was actually inspected that night?
Mark, I don’t think there has been any dispute that after the H&8th visit the inspectors went on to south Oklahoma City….
Ashley- Are you saying the taxpayer doesn’t have a right to be upset? Efficiency is the key here. One employee could have made a phone call and saved thousands of taxpayer dollars. For the people that think the health dept. was right… do you not see that you paid 27 people to show up at a night food market that is trying to increase the quality of life of the city you live in? Have you ever wanted something fun to do on Fri. night that isn’t going to see a movie or taking the family to Applebees.
Pretty sure Ashley is a shill for the Health Dept. I applaud them for keeping up with what is said, but if you are going to post in a story that is related to you, as a PR person for said organization she should at least have enough sense to not sound so informed with specifics such as she posts.
Did you do this on the tax payer dollar? haha…
It is inaccurate to say that organizers “choose” (sic)to “break the law.” The organizers followed the rules, as best as they could understand them. The permitting regulations contain some leeway for exceptions to be granted. So Ashley – to be accurate – the organizers knew they did not have a permit, but they did not knowingly “break the law” as they believed city officials had conveyed verbally that the event shouldn’t encounter any problems.
Steve – if “Ashley’s” comments above are indeed a reiteration of the health dept’s spokeswoman, then the health dept’s PR work is as lame and amateur as their organizational skills for raiding public events.
Steve: great articles, keep their feet to the fire.
Supposedly this was part of a citywide crackdown and specifically the first stop on the way to southside. Have yet to see ANY media reports that others were indeed targeted. The only mention is an unnamed business by “Ashley G” in the above posts…
So the question remain:
1) Did these various agencies continue on to other locations (or did they meet their quota)?
2) Which locations?
3) Were any other vendors cited/fined/shut down?
4) The names of the businesses involved?
5) Was there the same show of force displayed at the other locations and in the same numbers?
6) How does the City Manager not know of this raid in advance? Isn’t he ultimately in charge of the some of the folks that were involved?
7) Shouldn’t the head of those departments informed Mr. Couch what was going down?
I can semi answer 6 and 7. The City/County Health Dept does not answer in a direct chain of command to Jim Couch. As to 7 NO WAY. The PD does not ask the city managers permission nor inform him of a raid that is about to happen on the local dope house and neither should other agencies. The fewer non-enforcement folks that know the better.
According to this article http://tinyurl.com/3fltnss I believe Mr. Couch was at the food truck thing. I was going to paste the quote but I didn’t know if we were allowed to do that here. 3rd paragraph, first sentence.
I’m still working on my response to the editorial. It was
5,000 words so I’ve been editing it. I kind of rambled on and on and on so
I wanted to get back on focus. Anyway, I’ve been reading Berry Trammel and I started putting words like “rabble rousers”
and “knuckleheads” in it, but I thought maybe that would be
distracting. Then before I knew it, I was talking about
Archduke Ferdinand so then I had to delete that. Then I kept
chewing on a pencil and laughing and yelling out Westward Ho! so then I had to take a break.
You know, this writing coherently is a lot harder than it seems sometimes.
Well I’m flummoxed. Again!
1.Am I reading the quote correctly in
that Mr. Couch does think that “Gestapo type tactics” were used? What does “Gestapo type tactics” mean?
2. Are the Casey Kasem shows any good after all this time?
After I get through with the Plaza District festival on Oct 1st I am going to post a blog on the processes, obstacles and time it took to obtain all the permits. I think it will be pretty interesting.
What is the estimate of how many people(customers) showed up?