photo by: Rochelle Valverde

Outdoor seating at The Bourgeois Pig, 6. E. Ninth St., is pictured on July 31, 2020.

City leaders will soon discuss whether to eventually end a program created at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic that has allowed restaurants to expand their outdoor dining into parking stalls or to consider making the program permanent.

In June 2020, the city created a temporary right-of-way or “parklet” program that has allowed downtown businesses to repurpose sidewalks and parking stalls directly in front of their storefronts for outdoor dining and other uses. The program was initially set to expire after four months, but as the pandemic persisted the commission later extended the program through the end of this year.

As part of its meeting Tuesday, the commission will discuss whether to let that expiration date stand or to follow a recommendation from city staff to create a proposal for a permanent version of the program. As part of the temporary program, the city waived sidewalk dining licensing fees for the program, amounting to a total of $24,000 in waived fees, according to a city staff memo to the commission.

More than 20 downtown businesses have used the program to expand their outside dining, and city staff has received interest from a number of them to make it a long-term program, according to the memo. However, the city has also heard from a retail business that is against a permanent version of the program.

Currently, 22 downtown businesses are participating in the program, and the memo states that city staff continues to be contacted by businesses interested in it. All the businesses are restaurants or bars, plus some multi-use businesses that also serve food and drinks.

Matt Hyde, of 715 Restaurant, wrote to the city to say that the program had saved his business and more than 30 jobs along with it, and that it undoubtedly had saved other businesses as well. Hyde asked the city to make the program permanent, saying that with proper design guidelines, safety codes and necessary fees the “vibrant” areas would benefit not only the individual businesses participating in the program but the entire downtown economy. He also said recovery from the pandemic would be a long process that would benefit from the program’s continuation.

“The economic recovery from Covid will last years for us, and I’m guessing many other food and beverage establishments, as well,” Hyde wrote. “A permanent parklet program will help us in our recovery, and help to ensure the long-term stability and success of what we’ve spent many years establishing in the community.”

Jennifer McKnight, who owns Arizona Trading Co., took a different view. In a letter to the city, McKnight said that downtown retail was “on life support” and that the current setup of the parklets and the city’s policies hurt retail businesses. McKnight said retail depended on parking because “visitors don’t want to walk far to get to their destination.” She said the program took parking spots out of commission at all times of day even though some restaurants don’t open until the afternoon, making the area feel deserted and taking away parking for retail.

“The parklets are increasingly encroaching on precious spots, especially on the 700 block, where it seems a new parklet pops up every day,” McKnight said. She asked that the program be allowed to expire as scheduled.

City staff is recommending that the commission consider creating a permanent version of the program, but notes in the memo that there have been challenges with its current setup. As it was originally envisioned to last only four months, the resolution that created the program provided only general considerations regarding parklet design criteria and construction. Staff later began to require a pre-construction meeting to review the applicant’s plans and provide approval prior to build-out. However, as the weather got colder, some businesses made modifications to accommodate temperatures that violated city code and “created concerns.” Those modifications included installation of propane heaters in proximity to combustible material, erecting tall walls or completely enclosing the parklet.

City staff is recommending that the commission direct staff to work on a permanent program for parklets that would be presented to the commission for consideration at a later date. The memo states that the proposal for a permanent program would be informed by public engagement, proper design criteria and the evaluation of revenue impacts.

The City Commission will convene virtually at 5:45 p.m. Tuesday with limited staff in place at City Hall, 6 E. Sixth St. Residents can participate in the meeting in person or virtually. A link to register for the Zoom meeting and directions to submit written public comment are included in the agenda that is available on the city’s website, lawrenceks.org.