Hammond, IN Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Vending Zones (2026)

005(B)(2)(d), no mobile food vendor may locate outside a commercial or industrial zoned area without the prior approval of the city's Board of Public Works and Safety. City-owned or leased property, parking lots, and parking facilities require that Board's approval under subsection (2)(a), and vendors may not operate in a way that impedes use of city property or endangers public safety or property under subsection (2)(c). Subsection (2)(e) bars operating within 200 feet of any intersection, except vendors on private property, and bans selling to passengers inside vehicles.

Subsection (2)(g) creates a 700-foot buffer from any elementary, middle, or high school (public, private, parochial, or charter, but not colleges) during school hours and for one hour before and after, and subsection (2)(h) bars locating within 250 feet of an establishment that also sells food or beverages, measured from one hour before that establishment's opening to one hour after its closing. Vending on private property requires the property owner's written permission kept on-site for inspection by police, Inspections Department, or other enforcement staff, and vendors cannot displace required parking, landscaping, drives, fire lanes, sidewalks, or accessible routes required by Hammond's zoning code. Vendors must also keep a reasonable distance from posted crosswalks, driveways, alleyways, and right-of-way lines, and may not interfere with vehicular or pedestrian traffic.