Hundreds of restaurants will be unable to serve alcohol in their outdoor dining areas this summer due to a delay in permitting.
New York City restaurants hoping to serve alcohol in their outdoor dining areas will likely have to wait months, writes Kevin Duggan in Streetsblog NYC, “due to a gap in the city’s effort to fast-track a backlog in permitting as the opening of season kicks off in mere days, legal experts warned.”
Restaurants won’t be able to serve alcohol if the State Liquor Authority doesn’t accept the city’s “conditional approvals” for outdoor dining. So far, only 42 out of 3,500 applications have received a full DOT license.
According to one attorney who specializes in hospitality, outdoor dining without the option to serve alcohol is “not worthless, but pretty close” as far as revenue goes. The delay could last as long as four months, Duggan adds, impacting restaurants the most during the busy summer season.
Many NYC restaurants have already removed their outdoor dining setups after new city rules were put in place last year that drove up costs for businesses. Outdoor — or al fresco — dining boomed in popularity during the Covid-19 pandemic, when social distancing precautions prompted restaurants around the country to expand outdoor seating options. Yet as early as 2023, some cities began clawing back outdoor and curbside space or enacted prohibitively expensive or onerous regulations.
FULL STORY: ‘Disaster’: Outdoor Dining Snafu Could Ban Alfresco Booze For Months
NYC Outdoor Dining Could Get a Re-Do
The city council is considering making the al fresco dining program year-round to address cost concerns from small businesses.
NYC Approves Only 40 of Over 1,300 of Outdoor Dining Applications
Restaurant owners say they’ve been in limbo for months as city departments point fingers at each other for delays in permit approvals.
DC Extends Application Window for Outdoor Dining Permits
District restaurants will have until the end of November to apply, but businesses with permits in rush hour parking lanes must end operations on July 31.
Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program
Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Ken Jennings Launches Transit Web Series
The Jeopardy champ wants you to ride public transit.
Driving Equity and Clean Air: California Invests in Greener School Transportation
California has awarded $500 million to fund 1,000 zero-emission school buses and chargers for educational agencies as part of its effort to reduce pollution, improve student health, and accelerate the transition to clean transportation.
Congress Moves to End Reconnecting Communities and Related Grants
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee moved to rescind funding for the Neighborhood Equity and Access program, which funds highway removals, freeway caps, transit projects, pedestrian infrastructure, and more.
From Throughway to Public Space: Taking Back the American Street
How the Covid-19 pandemic taught us new ways to reclaim city streets from cars.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Heyer Gruel & Associates PA
Ada County Highway District
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service