Cabarrus County, NC Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Food Truck Permits (2026)

Mobile food vending falls under Chapter 7, Section 7-3, Item 68 (Temporary Uses), which lists 'Itinerant Merchants' as a use requiring approval before operation. The county's Planning and Zoning Administrator issues the permit under the criteria in Chapter 12. Before setup, the vendor must obtain written, signed approval from the property owner and submit the original letter with the application. The stand, vehicle or display area cannot block emergency ingress or egress, sight triangles at intersections and driveways, or required off-street parking and loading areas serving the existing business on site.

Display or business activity in a public right-of-way, emergency access lane or fire lane is flatly not permitted. Unless the ordinance states otherwise, only one Temporary Use Permit may be active on a parcel at a time, and once a permit expires there must be a 30-day gap before a new one is issued for that parcel (a rule that does not apply to real estate or construction-related temporary uses). The itinerant merchant permit itself runs no more than 90 continuous days per calendar year at a given location, and that 90-day clock starts on the date of issue and keeps running even on days the vendor is not physically on site.

Recreational vehicles cannot be used as the temporary use, and overnight camping in RVs, tents or campers as part of a temporary use is prohibited.