New York City Council votes to expand year-round outdoor dining
The New York City Council voted Thursday to expand year-round outdoor dining.
Previously, only sidewalk cafes could operate in all seasons, while cafes on the street were only allowed to be open from April through November, and then had to be taken down.
Following Thursday's vote, restaurant owners will be able to install weatherproofing to keep those roadway cafes open all year.
Council Member Lincoln Restler, who sponsored the bill, says it eliminates the cost of installing and then removing the outdoor structures.
He says restaurants can start applying for the four-year license, which will cost $3,500 along with an additional fee based on outdoor footage.
"This does generate some revenue for the city, but the real purpose here is to make our streetscapes more dynamic and our neighborhoods more vibrant and to create good jobs," Restler said.
A spokesperson for Mayor Zohran Mamdani's office said in a statement:
"Mayor Mamdani proudly supports this much-needed legislation to improve outdoor dining and looks forward to working with City hall to implement a year-round program that is more accessible to more restaurants and ensures our streets can be used in a variety of ways to benefit all New Yorkers — not just vehicles.
"The Mayor has also made clear that we must eliminate unnecessary bureaucracy that makes it harder for small businesses to participate in one of our city's most popular programs, and the separate COGE proposal relating to outdoor dining would further simplify the process, reduce application costs for small businesses by up to $1,800 and cut the eight-month outdoor dining application process by 75% (to 2 months)."
City Council Speaker Julie Menin says the program will increase revenue for restaurant owners.
"At the same time, we want to balance the comments and concerns that we've heard from communities across our city to ensure that any kind of sidewalk cafe or roadway dining is kept free of debris, or trash, or rats," Menin said.
Owners will face fines between $200 and $500 if outdoor dining structures violate sanitary conditions.
Jordan Williams, restaurant manager at The Owl's Tail on the Upper West Side, says the program would help boost business.
"This used to be a laundromat, so we have very limited storage space inside," she said, "so when we have our [outdoor] seating, we can have truly like triple the business."
Williams says she's confident patrons will still want to sit outside even in cold temperatures or inclement weather.
"Torrential thunderstorms, people have umbrellas drinking an espresso martini," she said. "Like, you cannot stop a New Yorker."
She added, "It goes back to the roots of New York where, like, we just want to have community."
"Our members have advocated for years for an outdoor dining program that supports restaurants and bars, serves their neighborhoods and is practical for small businesses," the NYC Hospitality Alliance's Andrew Rigie and Robert Bookman said in a statement. "The Council continues to be a critical ally to restaurants and bars, which support nearly 280,000 jobs, generate $11.4 billion in wages and contribute approximately $28 billion in economic activity across the five boroughs. These changes demonstrate what can be achieved when policymakers listen to small businesses and work together on practical solutions."
"New Yorkers love dining outside, and outdoor seating makes our streets more vibrant while helping support the small businesses we cherish. Restricting roadway dining to a specific period was a hurdle that hurt restaurants' participation in the City's Dining Out NYC program, because many establishments couldn't easily store roadway setups during the offseason," DOT Commissioner Mike Flynn said.
