Title
Restaurant Parking Lot Usage Pilot Program Extension for Outdoor Dining - For the purpose of directing the City Manager to extend the Annapolis Outdoor Dining Pilot Program, allowing restaurants to use privately-owned parking lots for outdoor dining for one year.
Body
CITY COUNCIL OF THE
City of Annapolis
Resolution 2-23
Introduced by: Alderman Arnett
Co-sponsored by: Ald. Gay, Ald. O'Neill, Mayor Buckley
A RESOLUTION concerning
Restaurant Parking Lot Usage Pilot Program Extension for Outdoor Dining
FOR the purpose of directing the City Manager to extend the Annapolis Outdoor Dining Pilot Program, allowing restaurants to use privately-owned parking lots for outdoor dining, for one year.
WHEREAS, In determining that outdoor dining is a highly desirable offering by local restaurant establishments, the City Council passed R-22-22 in May 2022 to allow outdoor dining on private parking lots and to initiate a six-month study on the effectiveness of this parking lot usage and the impact on the City’s economy; and
WHEREAS, The City completed the study, "Annapolis Outdoor Dining Pilot Analysis," on September 23, 2022, which looked into the impact of outdoor dining on the pilot program restaurants and businesses in the communities near the restaurants, as well as how the loss of restaurant parking for outdoor dining impacted those areas; and
WHEREAS, The study states, "Outdoor dining provides broader economic value to the City and neighborhood as non-restaurant businesses contacted for the study voiced support for more outdoor dining. Not only does it help to stimulate other businesses, but these business owners enjoy being patrons of the restaurants as well."; and
WHEREAS, Adding extra seating during the Parking Lot Dining Pilot Program positively impacted the participating restaurants’ bottom lines, with the study stating, "the extra outdoor seating may be essential to their long-term survival."; and
WHEREAS, The study found that, in its temporary format, parking lot dining has little impact on the City of Annapolis, either positive or negative; and
WHEREAS, The Council adopted R-30-22 on October 24, 2022, to extend the Parking Lot Usage Pilot Program for an additional six months, which means the current outdoor dining allowance on privately-owned restaurant parking lots expires on April 25, 2023; and
WHEREAS, Because outdoor dining expands a restaurant's customer capacity, thereby requiring new or amended city permits and approvals, including but not limited to approval by the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board and amendments to any Special Exceptions granted by the Board of Appeals; and
WHEREAS, Obtaining all necessary approvals and permits may take an establishment several months to complete, it is appropriate to provide the establishments with additional time to come into compliance;
NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE ANNAPOLIS CITY COUNCIL that the City Manager is directed hereby to extend the Parking Lot Usage Pilot Program adopted under R-22-22 and R-30-22 for an additional twelve months from the date of passage of this resolution, pursuant to the same regulations, policies and procedures adopted by the Department of Planning and Zoning to implement the Parking Lot Usage Pilot Program.