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Council signals support to pursue three-year formal outdoor-dining program downtown
Summary
Staff proposed formalizing COVID-era outdoor dining for a multi-year term; council agreed to direct staff to consult restaurant operators and return with a resolution if operators want to proceed.
City staff presented a proposal to formalize and extend the temporary outdoor-dining expansions downtown that were adopted during the COVID era. The proposal would allow semi-permanent, ADA-compliant sidewalk and curbside dining within the public right-of-way under an encroachment agreement with insurance and indemnification requirements.
Engineering director Mike Moran told the council the city seeks a three-year timeframe to give restaurant operators confidence to invest in semi-permanent installations while the city completes its multimodal mobility study. Staff said East Bay examples include recorded encroachment agreements with property titles and that the city's existing Sideboard installation uses a recorded agreement.
Key details: Staff estimated fabrication and installation costs for similar treatments elsewhere can be roughly $1,000 per panel or about $10,000 for multiple components; the East Bay Regional Park District was cited in another agenda item as fabricator for trail panels. The proposal would require ADA compliance, insurance and a formal permit/encroachment process.
Council direction: Members who visited affected restaurants reported owners are interested in more stability and the council agreed staff should pursue outreach to the restaurant operators. The council said it preferred allowing individual restaurants to proceed where one owner wants to invest and another does not.
Next steps: Staff will contact restaurant operators to determine interest and, if operators want to proceed, bring a formal resolution and encroachment agreement back to council for adoption.
Ending: Council members said the three-year term balances business needs and the city's ongoing multimodal study and authorized staff to continue outreach rather than taking immediate action tonight.
