PORTLAND, Ore. — After learning earlier this year that Portland State University (PSU) would close a food cart pod in the middle of campus, vendors are pushing back and hoping to raise enough money to connect to the city's sewer system.
The food cart pod on Southwest Harrison by the Millar Library consists of four carts: Asian Fusion, Home Taste, Khao Niew Lao Street Food and Sheesh Shawarma.
"If you want the best shawarma, Sheesh has it," said Faisal Obeidi, the owner of Sheesh Shawarma. "We care a lot about our quality. Everything is fresh. That's why we opened this, so everyone tastes back home."
He's also a PSU student and he's worried that if he cannot find a new home for his cart, he'll be forced to close down.
"As a business student here, I'm trying to thrive my business. Slowly, I feel like they're trying to take that away from me," he said.
Back in February, university officials sent an email to Obeidi and the other vendors, notifying them that PSU would be cutting ties and that the food cart pod would close by July 1, 2024. They cited wastewater disposal and the lack of infrastructure for the closure. The pod is not hooked up to the sewer system.
"This is our gray water tank," Obeidi pointed out, "Two to three times a week, they are called DEQ haulers; they come and take it out."
"(Wastewater tanks) are starting to be phased out this year," said Jeff Martin, the interim environmental health director with Multnomah County. "All new pods are not being approved to have wastewater cubes. All the new construction pods have been required to connect to a city sewer."
He explained that since they're in the middle of this process, there's no hard date yet for county-wide enforcement of these rules. They're still in the education and compliance planning stage, and are working with operators.
"We know the operators are not going to be able to connect to a city sewer tomorrow," Martin said. "We want to work with them to come up with a plan that works for them and ensures public health is protected."
However, when it comes to these particular carts, the city — more specifically, the Bureau of Environmental Services — issued PSU a compliance order after an inspector documented illicit disposal of grease and other debris to a stormwater planter and storm drain on that site. According to city officials, the violations mean PSU has to act to either connect to the sewer system or close the pod.
Obeidi started a GoFundMe page in hopes of raising more than $40,000 in total to cover each pod; to fight the closure and ultimately stay in the same spot.
"People just think, 'Oh it's a food truck you can park it anywhere.' No, you have to get new permits, new regulations," he said. "I feel like this will affect the vibrancy of PSU."