Why El Tapatio is proposing this 1,800 square foot addition

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Rendering of the new structure proposed at El Tapatio Restaurant at 910 23rd St. (Photo Credit: City of Richmond)

A well-known food business on 23rd Street is seeking to construct a new building on its property that aims to make its operations more environmentally friendly.

El Tapatio at 910 23rd St., located between Wendell and Esmond avenues, operates a 2,700 square-foot restaurant. For years, the business has also offered commissary service, preparing food to be served off-site by food trucks, and also provides storage and cleaning services for food trucks in the parking area facing Wendell Avenue.

The truck cleaning service does not meet new standards set by the Waste Water Recovery Department, which requires businesses that wash food trucks to do so in an approved facility that captures and treats the wastewater prior to entrance into the sanitary sewer system.

“The area of the parking lot used for mobile trucks storage and cleaning must provide a roof and other methods to control the runoff,” city staff said in a report.

Now, El Tapatio is seeking the city’s approval to construct an 1,800 square food truck storage and cleaning structure at the northeast location of the site, with four garage doors along Wendell Avenue. As part of the plans, the area would receive landscaping enhancements such as planters and trees, according to city documents.

The proposal is set to be heard at the City of Richmond Design Review Board meeting on Wednesday, Dec. 11.