Parklets: Pleasanton Council OKs Outdoor Pop-Ups — For Now

PLEASANTON, CA — Outdoor pop-ups in front of Pleasanton businesses are here to stay — at least for now.

The Pleasanton City Council voted Tuesday to extend the temporary pop-up program through Dec. 31, beyond the planned expiration date of Labor Day. City staff members were directed to develop design guidelines for more permanent pop-ups that blend in with the aesthetics of Pleasanton and may be available for a seasonal or permanent lease, among other requirements.

Fifty Pleasanton businesses, including 20 downtown, are currently authorized to operate temporary pop-ups, which are located in public rights of way such as sidewalks and parking spaces. They allow businesses extra space for seating, furniture and tents, said Ellen Clark, the city's director of community development, at Tuesday's council meeting.

The city began granting businesses permits for outdoor pop-ups in response to restrictions on doing business indoors as California grappled with the coronavirus pandemic at its peak.

The pop-ups are commonly referred to as parklets, though parklets are technically publicly managed spaces open to all, not just to customers of a particular business. The city began operating a parklet pilot program in 2017 with the construction of one opposite Peet's Coffee & Tea on Main Street, but it was removed in April 2018 after it was damaged in an overnight hit-and-run crash.

Restaurant owners in particular have benefited from temporary pop-ups, while other businesses have been more likely to report negative effects, Clark said.

Pop-ups can benefit the community by increasing open space, calming traffic and enhancing the city's environment for pedestrians, Clark said. But some complain that the pop-ups block the visibility of certain businesses, negatively affect the aesthetics of downtown and worsen parking downtown, where visitors may already be hard-pressed to find convenient parking options.

The Pleasanton Downtown Association and Pleasanton Chamber of Commerce generally support temporary pop-ups. But the latter expressed some concern about parking and encouraged the city to continue investment in downtown, Clark said.

The Tri-Valley Restaurant Group, which formed during the coronavirus pandemic, also expressed support for the pop-ups, she said.

Maurice Dissels, owner of Oyo Restaurant and president of Tri-Valley Restaurant Group, wanted to see the city extend the program at least temporarily to account for good weather in the fall and to temper worries that California may reimpose restrictions on indoor business operations as the pandemic continues, he said during the council meeting's public comment period.

Alameda County has enacted masking recommendations as COVID-19 cases surge and the highly transmissible delta variant spreads, Zac Grant, executive director of the downtown association, said during public comment period.

"I just don't think that sunsetting a working emergency policy — until we have worked out the details of what will happen next — makes much sense," he said.

City staff recommended that the council allow the temporary pop-up policy to expire as planned on Labor Day because of their effects on parking and in the interest of equity: Not every business has enough space to open a pop-up even if it wants to.

The city council wasn't ready to bid them farewell.

"It has brought such a connection and such an excitement that we haven't had before," said Councilmember Julie Testa, who motioned to extend the pop-ups through the end of the year and possibly beyond.

Mayor Karla Brown was swayed, though she expressed concern about how retailers might be affected by lower visibility at Christmastime.

Councilmember Valerie Arkin cast the lone dissenting vote against the motion to extend temporary pop-ups through the year's end. The council voted unanimously to study more permanent options.

Correction: An earlier version of this report misstated Mayor Karla Brown's name.