Mayor, Deputy Mayor to Restaurants: We'll Be Out Personally Inspecting Sidewalk Dining Compliance

Restaurant owners – be careful! The Mayor and Deputy Mayor will soon be out on a Saturday night paying special attention to sidewalk cafe areas, and with calculators in hand. If there are too many tables and chairs for what the ordinance allows, there could be a problem. If they don't like what they see?

"Then we'll sign the complaint," Mayor Keith Killion said at Wednesday night's work session meeting. While he said it's "no threat," the mayor–a village police officer for three decades–said he's no stranger to court and wouldn't mind spending a day there to show permit compliance is needed in the crowded downtown.

The council entertained a discussion on Wednesday night to overhaul its sidewalk cafe dining ordinance, which last touched in 2001 features what the council believes to be a high level of infractions from the restaurants not applying for permits but having outdoor dining anyway.

Deputy Mayor Tom Riche took the lead in explaining what exists and what could change for 2012.

Riche said that per the existing ordinance, there are five separate and distinct categories for determining fee structures, and it's based on the number of outdoor seats a restaurant has. Twenty-eight restaurants took out licenses in 2010, which generated $7,100. No permits were taken out for restaurants with four or fewer outdoor tables.

But that data doesn't square with what he sees downtown, Riche said.

"It seems pretty obvious that based upon my observations on what's going on downtown versus what I see here, is that the smaller establishments that have one or two tables or just a bench are basically ignoring the licensing requirement," he said.

The council said after eleven years, it's time to give it another hard look, which will mean fee increases as well.

"There are some things that aren't the same down there as they were in 2001," the mayor said, adding that "the cost has gone up for the village; we have to temper that with what's going on with the economy."

Riche proposed that an increase in licensing fees for 2012 could help offset the increased police presence that will be downtown, along with health department inspection costs that rise with outdoor dining.

Per Riche's proposal, those with few tables would likely see fee structures "kept toward a minimum" in 2012. But, he added, the village "would charge appropriately to those merchants who benefit from the ordinance." Riche's proposal would see those five fee categories dropped to three; and the council would review structures more frequently under his proposal, he said.

The deputy mayor, when asked by Councilman Paul Aronsohn, said he hadn't run the numbers to ensure that the future structures would exactly cover the cost of village services provided, but said he's "making an assumption" that outdoor cafes require more services.

Village Manager Ken Gabbert said Wednesday that he was hesitant to dedicate fee money collected exclusively for village enforcement given the cost/benefits analysis but said it "could be done" should the council go that route.

Aronsohn, the chamber of commerce liaison, said he agreed that non-compliance was a problem among restaurants. "That's something we should address," he remarked.

Aronsohn added that some areas are crowded and prevent passage for those with disabilities. Parents with strollers also have difficulties, others reported. Killion tacked onto those comments by adding that there are other infractions in village right-of-ways, as well as decorations that defy village law. Some could hold the village liable in lawsuits should something go wrong, he said.

Riche said during his last go around on the council, it was estimated that 80-90 percent of restaurants were violating the sidewalk regulations for pedestrian traffic.

The ordinance, which still has many details to be smoothed over, would likely be ready for Jan. 1, 2012. The council has asked the chamber of commerce's help to work with them through the process and persuade restaurants in non-compliance to conform.