Planning commission recommends city adopt outdoor dining ordinance, staff says council would set $1,000-per-space fee

Community and Economic Development Director Jen Brewington told the Planning Commission that the proposed outdoor dining ordinance formalizes temporary rules created during the COVID-19 pandemic and provides a path for businesses to expand seating into public sidewalks, private lots and parking spaces.

"So tonight we're gonna talk a little bit about our outdoor dining ordinance," Brewington said, explaining that the city originally approved a May 2020 resolution to allow expanded outdoor service under a program called Eat Street 2020.

The ordinance would replace the Eat Street 2020 special-event approach with a recurring process under which businesses apply for an interim use permit (IUP) when they need temporary exceptions for site conditions that encroach on public rights-of-way or lack permanent infrastructure. Brewington described the IUP as a tool that allows the city to set conditions for noise, safety, music and hours of operation.

Bringing the ordinance into a recurring permit structure also responds to a stated requirement from the Metropolitan Council that the city track and charge fees for use of certain public spaces. "Council has decided to do a thousand dollars per space," Brewington said; she added that the City Council will review fee approval when businesses apply for permits.

Commissioners and staff clarified how the new rules would apply in practice. Sidewalk dining that consists of a single table or small number of seats would still require an application so the city has contact information for emergency access or maintenance work, but Brewington said the parking-space fee would apply only to those parking spaces a business requests to convert. "Commissioner, only for, parking lot, for the access the parking lot," Brewington said when asked about fee application.

The draft ordinance also sets temporal and safety limits. Brewington said staff will require applicants to show how seating will be barricaded and kept ADA-accessible, and that short-term or seasonal requests can be tailored (for example, a two-month permit). The draft includes a clause referenced in the packet that structures temporary installations with a maximum constructed duration (the packet text referenced a 250-day limit for certain temporary structures); staff said businesses could reapply for subsequent permits.

Commissioners asked how special events and recurring community activations would interact with the new rules. Brewington explained that event permits — such as the classic car show hosted by the Victoria Business Association — remain separate. Event permits can temporarily allow open containers and other activity during the event window, while the outdoor dining permit enables seasonal or ongoing expanded seating outside a business’s property on a regular basis.

Food trucks are not currently licensed by the city, Brewington said; she described them as rare in Victoria and said the city is examining whether to create a process for them. She said the city generally prioritizes local restaurateurs for event vending.

The Planning Commission moved to recommend that the City Council adopt the outdoor dining ordinance with the edits suggested by the commissioners. The motion passed on a voice vote; commissioners recommended that staff and council clarify capitalization/wording and parity between public- and private-space application bullets before final adoption.

The city will forward the ordinance and staff recommendation to the City Council, which must approve fee levels and the final ordinance language.