'Food park' might roll into Rathdrum

John Sylte thinks the bustling town of Rathdrum is ready for his ambitious food-on-the-go plan.

Hoping to ride the growing wave of mobile food stands that have soared in popularity in recent years, the Rathdrum native has pitched his idea to city officials.

His vision to provide space off Highway 53 for mobile food vendors is moving ahead, he said.

But first things first. Because Rathdrum does not have any statutes that address mobile food courts, city officials provided the entrepreneur with ordinances that regulate those practices in Post Falls and Coeur d’Alene.

Sylte, a former technical writer, has reviewed those and plans to work on a draft statute for Rathdrum officials to consider.

If his plan moves forward, the food court would be located on 2 acres off Highway 53, in front of his family’s 200-acre cattle ranch near the Les Schwab tire center.

“We’d be offering food vendors a place to sell their stuff with a monthly lease,” said Sylte, who works as a counselor when he’s not tending to the ranch.

“I’d like to see a diversity of offerings — a produce stand, sushi, maybe even a nice central seating area where people could just hang out, maybe some live music,” he said. “Make it more than just food.”

A strong advocate of the community, Sylte said the food court could offer local folks a great opportunity for professional growth.

“Maybe some local families want to start their own business and a food truck is a good stepping-stone to opening a restaurant,” he said. “I want to build good community relations and promote business.”

Rathdrum City Administrator Leon Duce said the city welcomed visionaries like Sylte, but officials were not ready to take any action yet.

“We sat down and talked to him and asked him to submit what he wanted and put together a first draft (ordinance),” Duce said. “From there it would go to planning and zoning and then to council and a public hearing.”

Sylte, 45, emphasized his plans are preliminary. Early feedback has been positive.

“At this point, it looks very promising and the response has been fantastic,” he says.

If he doesn’t run into any major roadblocks, Sylte says he would like to open his business by next spring or possibly in the summer. The property already has utilities.

And Sylte has already picked a name for his business.

“The natives called Rathdrum Mountain ‘Storm King,’” he said. “I’d call it Storm King Food Park. I don’t like the term food truck.”

For information on leasing a spot, call John Sylte at 208-687-6699.