By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — For the Hutchinson City Council on Tuesday the competitive situation that concerns local taxi services that prompted them to show up in opposition to the granting of a certificate to Axel's Taxi is one of the reasons that body really felt like it doesn't have the right to tell the new business no.
"I honestly think it's a silly code, to have to jump through all these hoops," said council member Jade Piros de Carvalho. "If we have 10, those who aren't providing a good level of service are going to be weeded out by customer choice."
That doesn't even figure in ridesharing services that are regulated at the state level. However, if there's going to be a code, there should be more teeth to it, according to City Clerk Karen Weltmer.
"There's nothing in the code that allows me to do anything when I ask for, I tell them their certificate of insurance has expired and I need it. I don't get it. There's nothing that I can do. Previously, when Mr. Hirt was over the traffic division, he and I thought annual inspections would be a great idea, so we made a sheet and did it, but there's nothing in the city code that allows us to do that and so we were fought on it and so we couldn't do it."
Ultimately, after a half hour of testimony from the owners and competing taxi services, the council voted 5-0 to allow Axel's Taxi to operate. The question of what the city code should say was left for another day.