The Board of Representatives last week voted to move ahead with a plan to introduce a square footage charge for downtown restaurant owners who use city sidewalk space for cafes. The proposed ordinance requires cafe operators to pay $1 per square foot in the first year and $2 per square foot in subsequent years.
Since being introduced, the plan to raise fees on sidewalk cafes has been met with pushback from restaurant owners. An initial proposal discussed earlier this year involved raising the application fee from $100 to $200 as well as adding a $3 per square foot charge. Restaurant owners, however, argued that the fee hike was too steep and would hurt their businesses which have helped enhance the downtown.
More changes may be in store. On Monday, Sandy Goldstein, the president of the Downtown Special Services District, which represents downtown businesses, said she recently met with restaurant owners who expressed concerns that the plan puts them at a “competitive disadvantage” with other restaurants in the city that use outdoor space. The ordinance would only apply to downtown restaurants.
She said she intends to to ask the city to consider adopting the $1 per square foot fee system as a two-year “pilot program.”
“Let’s see how it works out,” she said.
The DSSD as well as restaurant owners are expected to attend a public hearing on the ordinance. A date on the hearing has not yet been announced.
