Food trucks. For community events, parties, conventions, etc. people see these trucks almost everywhere something big is happening. During the summer and until the end of September several food trucks have come out to 980 Shepard Church Dr., Farmington. And it all started because one guy wanted to bring his community together.

“When I first moved into my townhome in Farmington Crossing back in 2006, I recall seeing artist renditions of what the community would look like once it was finished,” Aaron Waiss, one of the leaders on the Farmington Crossing HOA Board said. “Watercolor depictions of people walking around and socializing, sitting down on a bench by the pond, etc. At the time, and for many years after that, I was just fine staying home, barely even knowing my neighbors more than a passing ‘hi'. I suppose as I’ve gotten older, something changed where I wanted to get more involved in things and volunteer.” 

 Waiss said during the fall, he was encouraged to run for a spot on the HOA board and managed to get elected. “I wanted to get a little more involved in public service. I found that a lot of people actually shared the same interests as I did and just needed someone to get things started, so that’s what I did. I’m learning on the fly and doing my best to give people more things to do and become more involved if they so desire.” 

An Earth Day community cleanup event back in the spring will hopefully become a yearly occurrence to help keep the property/trails cleared of trash, he said. “I don’t remember exactly what sparked it, but I was trying to think of other events that the community might enjoy and I came up with the food truck idea, and people really seem to have enjoyed it.”

Waiss was able to get several food trucks to come to the neighborhood giving the community many options throughout the summer. From trucks like Nacho Average Nachos to Travelin' Gyro there were quite a few food options to choose from.

“I was fairly surprised by just how easy it was to speak with and schedule most of the trucks and in general, most of the vendors have been great to work with and have been eager to give us a shot,” said Waiss. “I had so many options to choose from in the end that the trucks that didn't respond to my inquiries I could simply move on from. All I had to do was reach out and engage them.” 

There were a couple of trucks that required a minimum number of sales (where we would be responsible for the difference if they didn’t make that amount), he said. “With this being a new event this year, we really couldn’t afford to take that chance, but overall, the trucks have been very positive and happy with coming here, mentioning that everyone has been incredibly nice and generous.”

In the middle of September, Waiss had three food trucks come out and held a community-wide garage sale as well that gave the community a chance to sell things they didn’t need and socialize with the community at the same time.

“I wanted to make this an ‘event’ for community members and, really, the entire city of Farmington,” he said.