About 20 food carts will be relocated off State Street starting May 19 through October 31 due to construction, the university said Tuesday.
New locations include the East Campus Mall area and North Lake Street, according to a university news release. Construction is scheduled to begin after the semester ends and will conclude before the beginning of the fall semester.
The construction is for the new State Street Mall, which will have improved paving and lighting, additional seating areas and a raised pedestrian crosswalk at North Park Street.
Steven Lawrence, owner of the highly successful Fried and Fabulous food cart, said he was displeased by the news and potential relocation.
“There are a lot of vendors who are asking questions about where they are going and what their site assignment is going to be,” Lawrence said. “There really has been a real lack of communication from the city here.”
Lawrence said the relocation could have detrimental effects on businesses due to limited access to the carts with construction underway.
“In the food cart business, location is everything. If you are talking about a three minute walk out of the way, it can be a 100 percent difference in terms of what the sales are,” Lawrence said.
The construction should not affect late-night vending locations, according to Lawrence.
“I understand it is a really tough situation, but I wish there had been better communication from the city,” Lawrence said.
Food carts have been a part of Madison since 1977, according to the university.
