ONTARIO – The longtime Ontario-based King of Bar-B-Que Ribs will continue to operate, for at least another month.
At its Wednesday night meeting, Ontario Council tabled legislation regarding concession stands until Sept. 5 at the request of Law Director Andrew Medwid, and will allow the King of Ribs concession stand owner, Ron Moton, to continue operations for now.
“There is some research I need to do on the 40-day Ohio Revised Code qualification, so I would request that council table this for me to be able to do that research,” Medwid said.
The five present council members obliged. Council members Nathan Sunderland and Eddie Gallo were not in attendance and were excused by the others.
At-large councilman Larry Arnold later added he will consider supporting Moton’s requested changes to the legislation.
“I’m at the point right now that we’ve received tremendous feedback whether its social media or through comments or whatever, and the reality of it is, it’s all been in favor of letting this gentleman continue to operate,” Arnold said. “And I’m of the opinion that we’re here to speak on behalf of the citizens and I haven’t heard any opposition against him. So, who are we to stand in the way this gentleman if he wants to continue to operate?”
Ontario’s proposed legislation addresses the current lack of legislation for concession stands and sets guidelines for stand owners, including a 30-day limit on the number of days a concession stand could operate from one location before requiring that it moves to a different one. The limit would allow for 30 business days, meaning the number of days would be based on the business’s hours. Days when the business didn’t open would not count towards its 30-day limit.
Concession stands are defined by the city’s codified ordinances as “any structure, vehicle or trailer designed to display goods, objects, apparel or food for direct sale to the general public,” but they are not mentioned in its planning code. This makes them illegal.
However, Moton has been unknowingly serving in Ontario since 1993. He started inside of Sam’s Club and later moved outside of ABC Warehouse before setting up in the Lowe’s Home Improvement parking lot, where he has primarily served what he calls the “the best barbecue ribs in the world” for the past five years.
Moton said he had never been confronted about the legality of his business until earlier this year when he asked city officials if they could run electricity to his stand. The response was an email saying to “cease and desist” operating his concession stand.
“I came to them to ask them for electric. How did this escalate?” Moton recalled the situation that’s led him to fear for his business’s fate, whether the legislation passes or fails.
His request led Ontario officials to realize the lack of legislation concerning concession stands.
In June, council members and a larger-than-usual audience were introduced to an ordinance regarding concession stands.
Several people spoke on behalf of Moton, including Mansfield attorney Edward Corley. At that time, he asked the King of Ribs be exempt from the legislation by “grandfathering in” the business.
When the law director explained the timeline, saying “grandfathering” wouldn’t be possible, Corley returned with a different proposition. In July, Corley asked council to revise the ordinance to allow 180 days before concession stand must relocate.
This would allow the King of Ribs to stay in the Lowe’s parking lot from spring through early fall. Moton typically keeps his stand open through October.
“Reviewing the rules and regulations in the concerned ordinance, I can see where you’d need an ordinance … however the ordinance that is proposed would essentially put the King of Ribs out of business,” Corley said.
He expressed concern that Moton’s customers wouldn’t know where to find the stand.
On July 18, council didn’t discuss the possibility of amending the legislation to read 180 instead of 30 days, but they did mention extending the number of operating days from between 40 to 90. This conversation took place before hearing from Corley.
They asked the law director to investigate the state’s health department regulations and expressed intentions to revise the legislation around their findings.
Medwid met with Richland Public Health, but asked council to table the legislation through Sept. 5 while he furthered researched the matter. Some of what he’s found so far is “as clear as mud.”
The Richland Source approached the health department about its regulations last week.
According to Wesley Engelbach of Richland Public Health, a mobile food service like the King of Ribs must move every 40 days.
He cited Ohio Revised Code 3717.01, which reads: “Mobile food service operation means a food service operation… that routinely changes location, except that if the operation remains at any one location for more than forty consecutive days, the operation is no longer a mobile food service operation.”
“As we can see, he hasn’t violated that requirement… He hasn’t violated it, as far as what’s documented.” Engelbach said.
This would mean moving can be as little as tearing down and moving a few feet down the parking lot, which is what Moton says he’s routinely done while serving in Ontario.
But it’s open for interpretation by the law director, according to Engelbach.
“As far as what constitutes moving that depends on the law director,” he said. “Law director would define that.”
When Ontario’s law director was asked July 23 how he would interpret “moving,” Medwid didn’t provide comment and instead directed the Richland Source to consult the proposed ordinance.
The ordinance states, “no concession stand may sell… to the general public on those same premises for more than 30 days in any calendar year based upon the concession stand’s hours of operation.”
In a Facebook comment, he provided an example.
“Actually, how the proposal is written is that any concession stand can operate in the same location for ‘x’ amount of days. After that timeframe expires, that concession stand just have to move to another location to be in compliance,” Medwid wrote in response to another commenter. “In Mr. Morton’s case, he could move from Lowe’s parking lot to the Office Max parking lot and be in compliance.”
In addition to the 30-day limit placed on concession stands, the proposed legislation would require stand owners to get a permit from the zoning inspector before operating. Permits would be free and expire based on the concession stand hours. If a business is open seven days a week, the permit would only be valid for a month, but if a business was open five days a week, the permit could be used for six weeks.
The legislation excludes concession stands operated as temporary outdoor amusements, those operated on property owned, leased or controlled by the operator of the concession stand or to concession stands organized as a “not-for-profit pursuant.”
Moton told the Richland Source that he does have a lease with Lowe’s, but Medwid said in a later interview that the King of Ribs Bar-B-Que Ribs would not be exempt, despite its lease.
“As I’ve explained it to him, the intended legislation would require him to move,” Medwid said.
He noted that Lowes, as many properties in Ontario, isn’t owned by the business operating there. The Richland County auditor’s website lists the owner as “ARCP LW Mansfield, OH, LLC A Delaware.”
Initially, 501c3 non-profits were not going to be exempt from the legislation, but that was changed after a planning commission meeting where the regulations were first brought up and before the legislation’s first reading before council.
Anyone who violates the ordinance would have their permit immediately revoked and be fined $1,000 per day. It would go into effect 30 days after the vote if passed by the majority of council or immediately if it receives two-thirds or more of council’s vote.
The legislation will be brought again before council at the Sept. 5 meeting at the municipal building, 555 Stumbo Rd.
Ontario Proposed Ordinance No. 18-27
