Auburn, WA Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Vending Zones (2026)

260(C)(1) splits vending rights by zoning district. In nonresidential zones, defined to include all commercial, industrial and special purpose zones and districts, mobile vendors and food trucks may operate with no calendar-day cap tied to the zone itself. In residential zoning districts, including planned unit developments, vending is capped at no more than three calendar days in the same general location, and the vendor must run fully self-contained with no utility or power connections and no freestanding structures beyond the cart or vehicle itself, such as separate canopies or tents.

260(C)(2) requires nonresidential-zone vendors to park in a spot that does not block vehicle or pedestrian circulation, fire lanes, accessible stalls or driver sight lines, while residential-zone vendors cannot park on front yards or driveways in a way that blocks the public sidewalk, though private access tracts, private driveways that leave the sidewalk clear, and right-of-way locations under a permit are allowed. In every zone, vendors cannot block access to a city utility or interfere with garbage collection or mail delivery. A single canopy or tent with three or fewer flexible walls is allowed as a freestanding structure only if it sits within five feet of the cart or vehicle, is under 150 square feet, and is a factory-made unit kept in like-new condition without added panels or signage.