New food truck park will help Cincinnati show it's 'vibrant, hip and cool'

It's an empty paved parking lot right now, with lines marking where a bar, picnic tables and parking will soon be.

But by next week, the lot on Kellogg Avenue will be transformed into Cincinnati's first permanent food truck park, where customers can choose among up to 10 trucks selling barbecue, macaroni and cheese, sushi burritos, cheesecake, and a host of other foods depending on the day. 

Cove Food Park is about to open at 4601 Kellogg Ave. in the East End.

More:Cincinnati's new food truck park: Everything you need to know

Cincinnati City Councilman P.G. Sittenfeld was convinced that Cincinnati needed a food truck park after visiting one in Austin, Texas. On the way home from his last visit to that city, he tweeted:

"Each time I visit Austin I come home thinking Cincy needs a permanent food truck park.... Unleash more culinary entrepreneurs & bring pp. together! Cities that are considered vibrant, hip and cool have, not only robust food truck scenes, they also have permanent places."

Cincinnati certainly has enough trucks for it. There are currently about 140 food trucks registered with health departments in the Greater Cincinnati area. 

While Sittenfeld was tweeting his hopes for a cool thing for Cincinnati, Tony Lange, the president of Queen City Mobile Food Truck Association, was already working on making a food truck park happen.  

The organization had almost settled on a place in West Chester that was supposed to open last fall, but it had run up against zoning regulations restricting parking. So they set their sights on the Kellogg Avenue lot, which is owned by Rivertowne Marina.

Lange liked the location on a busy street, near boat traffic and busy soccer fields, and right on the way for people coming and going to Riverbend Music Center concerts. 

"A lot of food trucks really need a home base," Lange said. "They can't afford to pay the fees for Bunbury or Taste of Cincinnati, but need a place where people can find them."

Sittenfeld and Lange organized a meeting with food truck operators, health officials and anyone else who might have a stake in it. The city is not spending tax dollars on the food truck park.

The park will be open to any food truck

Food trucks can book a space through Street Food Finder, a food truck-tracking app. Because everyone will be able to see who's going to be there, "I think there will always be an eclectic group of vendors," said Lange.

Food truck parks have sprung up in cities all over the country. Austin has at least seven; Columbus has one on High Street once a week during warmer months. 

"Cities that are considered vibrant and hip and cool have a robust food scene," Sittenfeld said. "We have that here with restaurants, but the food trucks just roam around and hope people can make it. This brings a lot of pieces together."

Lange said the Cincinnati food truck park will have at least four to six trucks at lunch and eight to 10 at dinner, with parking and indoor restrooms on site. There will also be a stage for performers.  

It's on Rivertowne Marina land, where a boat sales company used to operate. When the boat sales company moved, it left behind wood boat lifts and wooden pallets, which will be used to build tables.  

There will also be a tended outdoor bar, where craft beer will be sold. The association hasn't yet gotten a liquor license yet so it's BYOB for a little while.

Marina owner Don Jones said the food truck park is the perfect fit for the vacant land. Because of flooding, anything that goes in has to be removable.  

He's often visited a food truck park in Dallas, where his daughter lives, and loved it enough to make it a must-stop during visits. He thinks Cincinnati's can be just as fun.

Anton Gaffney, owner of Sweets and Meats BBQ food truck, which specializes in smoked meats made from recipes passed down through generations of his family, said he'll incorporate the food truck park into his routes. 

"This is awesome for truck owners," he said. "It will definitely help highlight the presence of food trucks. Right now it's not a big scene, but it's growing into one."

Visitors will also be able to find loaded baked potato macaroni and cheese, a specialty of MamaBear's Mac Food Truck. Owner Kimberly Heileman said she plans to bring her truck to the park too.

"This is a neat thing to be a part of," she said. "I used to live near here and know it can be successful."

More:Food trucks to take over Downtown Monday for Taste of Cincinnati competition

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If you go

Grand opening: May 3

Hours: It will be open half the year: following the marina's schedule, from 11 a.m.- 10 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.  It may stay open later on Riverbend concert nights.

More: Visit www.covefoodpark.com.