Steinbach City Council has shelved a plan to loosen limitations on food trucks.

Under the current policy, food trucks cannot be set up within 122 metres of a restaurant or park on a street right of way and must obtain permission to set up on city land.

At a Strategic Priorities Committee meeting in early December, city administration presented council with a draft policy that would have allowed food trucks to be set up within 10 metres of a restaurant and park on a street right of way.

owners note they are still hurting from the effects of COVID-19 restrictions. One owner says "it truly feels like council is handing an anchor to a drowning person and your timing couldn’t be worse."

Funk notes council has listened to this feedback.

"We've decided to put the bylaw on the shelf for this time. We feel for businesses in our community that have suffered during COVID and we feel this is not the right time. When we do bring it forward, I think it is best to go directly to restaurateurs and form a bit of a panel and get something that is going to work for the whole entire community so that the businesses can live together on our Main Street."

Funk adds this is an important part of the process.

"That is what we want, we want to get feedback. That is why we have the media at our SPC meetings so that it gets publicized so that feedback can come from our community. We welcome all feedback, it is important and helps us make good decisions when we know what our community is thinking."