Neighbors upset by late-night taco time

Marco Mejia saw a perfect opportunity: Late-night patrons coming out of bars around Union and Buchanan Streets. They’re a bit drunk, quite a bit hungry. His solution of parking a taco truck at that intersection made logical — and business — sense, but it has upset some locals who don’t want the noise and other disruptions of his customers.

Those complaints came out in the open this summer in response to an application to permit the Street Meet taco truck to operate in that area. Locals worried about noise, garbage, and misbehavior filed more than 80 complaints to the Department of Public Works, according to ABC7 News.

ABC7 also quoted Mejia’s explanation for his inspiration: “There are a lot of bars down there, so all the drunk people coming out of the bars. . . . They come out really drunk and they eat some food and they’ll be feeling better.”

Meija says the truck will only operate three days a week. The permit application has the time spread over six days because the 10 p.m.–2 a.m. time frame spans midnight.

A public hearing on the matter is expected to take place in the near future. The Union Street Association had scheduled a meeting to discuss this issue shortly after our August deadline. Look for updates in future issues of the Marina Times.

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