Todd and Shanda McGee are no strangers to food-truck pods. Over the past seven years, they’ve been to more than 40 of them in nine states, including Alaska and Hawaii. They’ve crossed a few borders too, exploring the food-truck scenes in Mexico, Iceland and Belize.

The knowledge the McGees gathered from these missions will soon bear fruit when they break ground on their own food-truck pod on Bend’s west side.

“We’ve taken hundreds of pictures and written many pages of notes,” said Todd McGee. “We talked to the food-cart owners and the lot owners asking them what they would keep the same and what they would change if they were to do it again.”

Bend Basecamp Taps and Trucks is the planned name for the McGees’ food-truck venture. The name is apropos of the location, on Century Drive, the gateway to the Cascades Lakes Highway.

When complete it will be the latest in a string of food-truck pods in Bend in recent years. At last count there were around a dozen food-truck pods in Central Oregon’s biggest city, serving up everything from po’ boys and poke to sushi and stir-fries.

Countywide there are 30 food-truck pods, up from just one in 2013, according to Deschutes County spokesperson Kim Kutcher.

Mayor: Pods good for the community

Bend Mayor Melanie Kebler said the continued expansion of food-truck pods in Bend is good for the community because they utilize lots that are otherwise empty and help nearby businesses by getting hungry Bendites out of their cars and out on foot.

They also offer entrepreneurs a good entry point to the food industry, she said.

“I think if the market continues to support food-cart pods, we’re going to see them continue to pop up both temporary and permanent,” said Kebler. “As long as they are complying with health and noise requirements, food-cart pods create great neighborhood hubs.”

Kebler said she has been to a few herself and rotates among several of them.

“I think they’re great for families, especially because they provide a variety of food, so everyone can get something they like, sometimes a challenge for families with kids,” she said.

Katy Brooks, CEO and president of the Bend Chamber of Commerce, said the food-truck pod business in Bend still has room to grow. But food-truck pod managers need to be strategic. Not any old food truck will do.

“There likely is a saturation point, but I don’t think we’ve reached it yet,” said Brooks. “The key is to locate (pods) in high-traffic space and provide variety.

“Although food trucks are a startup with lower funding barriers, they do need to make money, and just like any other restaurant they need to have good food, ambiance, convenience and location,” she added.

Basecamp looks to have 10 trucks

Basecamp’s planned location is next to Powder House, the ski and snowboard shop owned by the McGees for over 22 years. The food-truck pod is the second part of a two-phase renovation on the Powder House property. In phase one, the McGees built a Nordic ski center behind their shop.

Todd McGee said he wants the atmosphere to reflect the name.

“We’ll have cool basecamp type stuff, outdoorsy type of feel. When you think of basecamps going up to Everest or basecamps to the top of Hood, that type of feel,” he said.

Basecamp is expected to be among Bend’s largest food-truck pods, with 10 food trucks and a 9,000-square-foot tap house with seating for around 200 people. The sides and front of the building will have garage doors that will roll up in the summer and down in the winter. Around 25 to 30 beers will be available on tap.

Set to open summer of 2025

If the current timeline holds, Basecamp will open in late summer 2025. LB Engineering Inc. in Bend has been hired to do the architectural work.

Fire pits, a band stage, a movie screen and at least 40 parking spaces are part of the plan. The second floor of the tap house is planned to have an area for family friendly games, including air hockey, shuffleboard and pool tables.

A food-truck pod would be the latest addition to a fast-growing corner of the city. The property backs up to Oregon State University-Cascades, and several bars and restaurants now line this section of Century Drive.

Nearby residents worry about noise carrying

While Bendites increasingly visit the area, some aren’t pleased with the changes. Eric Hobart, an 11-year neighborhood resident whose home is around 650 feet from the future pod, said the noise from nearby businesses is getting worse. He isn’t looking forward to another place that attracts large, noisy crowds.

“This neighborhood is an apex of noise. It really travels,” said Hobart, 72. “You get people drinking, food, the whole thing, and yeah it’s going to be a noise problem. There’s no doubt about it.”

Hobart said other businesses in the area have already increased the noise level. But his complaints to the city went unanswered. He fears a similar situation could occur with basecamp.

“I am afraid it’s going to be the same old, same old,” he said.

Todd McGee said he’s heard about noise concerns but doesn’t anticipate a problem.

Live music won’t be a regular feature of the business, McGee said. When that does occur, he intends to pull the plug by 9 p.m. There may be other ways to limit sound disturbances.

“Stage design (will limit noise) and our main building will be a huge noise blocker,” he said.

Gathering spot enhances community

Getting around a noise problem could require heightened consideration, but some say food-truck pods can improve a neighborhood.

“Food carts and organized pods are definitely adding to the city’s economy and vitality,” said Brooks. “These pods create community and blur the lines between the surrounding neighborhood and where people gather.”

McGee said the atmosphere will create a warm gathering place for the community and the food should also be a draw. It’s not clear yet what kind of fare will be available, but the quality needs to be next level, healthy and homemade, he said.

He’s hoping Powder House employees will help decide which food-truck proprietor makes the cut among more than two-dozen applicants.

“Everyone in the store will taste the food and see if it’s good,” said McGee. “We want unique homemade food that is going to compliment the tap house and other food carts, so we are looking for quality food made from scratch.”