Southfield, MI Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Food Truck Permits (2026)

Southfield City Code Chapter 72 defines a mobile food vending unit as any motorized or non-motorized vehicle, trailer, kiosk or portable device from which at least 80 percent of the products sold are food items, vended from a public street, highway or public parking space (Sec. 7.51). Sec. 7.53 bars engaging in the business of vending without first obtaining a license from the clerk. Applications under Sec. 7.56 require a nonrefundable fee, proof of identification, a description of the vending activity, dates, hours and locations sought, proof of permission to use the property, two 2-inch by 2-inch photographs, the vehicle's license number and a copy of its current Michigan registration and proof of insurance, and a valid Michigan sales tax license.

Sec. 7.57 requires Oakland County Health Department approval before selling any food or beverages, and Sec. 7.58 requires a certificate of occupancy where one is required before the license issues. A general vendor license runs 90 days, but Sec. 7.54 gives a mobile food vendor's license a full calendar year, conditioned on the vendor holding a current Oakland County Health Department license. The clerk forwards the application to the police chief for review under Sec. 7.61, and Sec. 7.62 lets the chief deny a license where the location or time would endanger public safety, the applicant falsified information, or the applicant was convicted of specified offenses.