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Council adopts sidewalk-width change to keep existing outdoor dining in compliance
Summary
Town council approved a consent agenda amendment reducing the minimum sidewalk clear width for outdoor dining from seven feet to four feet to allow longstanding businesses to comply with the code; administrators retain authority to limit seating layouts.
Smithfield Town Council approved a code amendment in the consent agenda that reduces the minimum clear sidewalk width for outdoor dining from seven feet to four feet, a change staff said will bring longstanding businesses into compliance with the town's regulations.
The change was presented as a technical amendment intended to address existing encroachments where property geometry leaves less than the prior seven-foot minimum. Zoning Administrator Tammy Clary said staff measured problem locations (for example, The Fiddling Pig and Cure) and concluded a four-foot clear width meets state ADA minimums and permits those businesses to remain in operation without retroactive enforcement actions.
Council members discussed potential chokepoints along Main Street where tighter widths could create pedestrian bottlenecks near the bakery and the town square. Clary and staff noted safeguards in the ordinance: businesses must submit a sketch for administrator approval and the zoning administrator can limit the permitted outdoor dining area to avoid narrow, high-traffic bottlenecks.
Council voted to approve the consent agenda, which included the outdoor dining text amendment, a grant acceptance and several invoices. The amendment is intended to preserve existing outdoor dining where sidewalks cannot physically meet the former standard while allowing the administrator discretion to protect pedestrian circulation.
