Bowling Green, KY Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Vending Zones (2026)

Mobile food vendor location rules in Bowling Green flow from three layers. (1) Public rights-of-way: Ordinance BG2019-50, codified at City Code 15-7 (Regulation of Mobile Food Vendors and Pushcart Vendors on City Rights-of-Way), requires a city permit and the color-coded annual sticker before operating on any city right-of-way. Vending may not block pedestrian sidewalk passage (City Code 21-1.02) and must comply with the city's generator-noise and fire-code guidelines included in the BG2019-50 permit packet. (2) Private property: Vendors operating on private property — restaurants, breweries, business-park lots, special-event venues — need permission from the property owner. The site's underlying zoning under Article 4 of the Warren County / Bowling Green Joint Zoning Ordinance determines whether mobile food vending is a permitted accessory use; commercial and industrial zones generally accommodate it, while pure residential zones generally do not (residential pushcart sales, e.g., ice cream trucks, may be allowed as a route vending use). Vendors on private property still need the city Mobile Food Unit permit, the city Occupational License, the Barren River District Health Department retail food permit, and the insurance coverages required by BG2019-50. (3) City parks: Vending in city parks is governed by City Code Chapter 16 (Parks and Recreation) and the Parks Department's rules and any concessionaire agreements in place — vendors should contact the city's Parks Department before operating in a park. The city has not published a fixed buffer distance from brick-and-mortar restaurants in its mobile-vendor ordinance, but vendors must respect each site's zoning, the city right-of-way permit conditions, and any property owner's terms. Special events (Hot Rods baseball games, downtown festivals, BG2020 events, etc.) typically operate under a separate event permit that may set its own vendor zone. Site or operational violations of BG2019-50 / Chapter 15 are enforced by Code Compliance & Animal Protection (270-393-3444) and the Code Enforcement and Nuisance Board (City Code 2-21), with fines up to $100 per offense and each day a separate offense.