Council adopts new outdoor-dining rules after extended debate; permits, months and fees set by ordinance

The Annapolis City Council voted unanimously April 14 to adopt O-10-24, new city rules for outdoor dining that alter permit durations, establish hours and targeted exceptions for the downtown market area, and direct staff to set an annual fee schedule tied to how many months and parking spaces businesses use for outdoor seating.

Council and staff said the ordinance aims to make outdoor dining a clearer, permanent option for restaurants while adding standards and a fee mechanism. The measure passed on third reading after multiple amendments that were debated on the council floor.

What the ordinance does

- Permit duration and timing: Council adopted an amendment that permits outdoor dining for up to nine months in a calendar year; the months do not need to be continuous but must be specified on the permit application. Council members described that change as intended to give businesses flexibility while keeping a defined annual cap.

- Hours and exceptions: The ordinance adopts standard hours for outdoor dining with specific exceptions for portions of downtown near Market House and Dock Street. Those exceptions allow later hours on certain weekends and on specified holiday Sundays; council amendments also carved out an expanded market-space description for a Waterfront/Dock Street block.

- Fees and administration: The council approved an amendment to tie the permit fee to the number of months a business seeks and to the number of parking spaces repurposed for seating; the fees will be set in a separate annual fee resolution. Alderman Oliver Savage said fees will be collected annually and deposited into a fund to support pedestrian improvements.

- Special exemptions and lease areas: The ordinance preserves a path for special exceptions and lease-based agreements for certain market-space blocks; council members discussed, and later amended, the ordinance language to align the exception descriptions in two places in the code.

Council debate and key exchanges

Council members debated multiple competing language options for months and hours. Alderman O'Neil and Alderman Savage each proposed language; Cynthia Reuter, the city's policy analyst in the Office of Law, explained the drafting and recommended dividing complex amendment questions so the council could vote on discrete elements.

Reuter told the council: “Amendment 3, the O'Neil amendment, has several different parts to it. And 1 part deals with the months ... Another section deals with how long the permit can be.”

Alderman Savage argued against a hard seasonal break, saying a forced winter break would not “provide much of a break per se” because fewer diners use outdoor seating in cold months; he proposed allowing up to nine months without requiring they be consecutive. Several members raised neighborhood concerns and said the council should preserve specific block-level exceptions for Market House, Pinkney and adjacent blocks so nearby residents would retain protections.

Public comment and business input

During public comment before the ordinance moved, restaurant operators and the Downtown Partnership urged more permanent and consistent rules for outdoor dining and offered data on visitor traffic during market events. Steven Brown, an attorney representing a downtown restaurant, asked that the Pearl restaurant be explicitly included in a market-space exemption so it could operate under the same permit hours as nearby businesses.

Vote and outcome

The council adopted O-10-24 on third reading by roll-call vote. The ordinance includes the nine-month permit cap (months specified at application), an annual fees approach tied to months and spaces, and downtown exceptions as amended. The adopted ordinance also directs staff to set detailed fees in the fee resolution to be adopted separately.

What the ordinance does not decide

The council did not set final dollar amounts in the meeting; council members agreed fees will be adopted in a separate fee resolution and asked staff to return with proposed amounts. Council members also left some lease and market-space details to future lease amendments and directed staff to prepare the associated documents for council consideration.

Context and next steps

Council members and staff said the ordinance replaces temporary emergency rules that had governed outdoor dining during the pandemic and creates a framework intended to balance business flexibility and neighborhood impacts. The fee schedule and any lease amendments must return to council for approval before wide changes to market-space uses take effect.

Ending

Council members said they will continue to work with businesses and residents on implementation details. The ordinance takes effect according to the standard rulemaking timetable once the city publishes the final adopted text and the fee resolution is enacted.