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Initiate a Text Amendment Process to Revise and Update the Town Code of Ordinances to Activate and Enliven Downtown with Safe Sidewalk Dining and Pop-Up Retail Events in Temporary Locations.
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Staff:
Department:
Rae Buckley, Director of Organizational and Strategic Initiatives
Town Manager's Office
Sarah Poulton, Downtown Special Projects Manager
Overview: The Downtown Work Plan public realm goal is to create active public spaces and improve sidewalks as a place to spend time. In support of that goal, Town Staff has worked with Downtown Stakeholders to pilot a new sidewalk dining and pop-up retail permit process that reduces regulatory barriers to those activities and maintains safety. To implement the new permit processes, we ask the Council to initiate the text amendment process to revise the code to make it consistent with the requirements of the state for sidewalk dining. Once initiated, the text amendment would be considered by boards and commissions and return to the Council at a public hearing in the fall of 2018.
Recommendation(s):
That the Council initiate a text amendment to the Town Code of Ordinances to update sidewalk dining regulations and allow pop-up retail events in temporary locations.
Sidewalk Dining:
* The Downtown Work Plan for FY 17 and 18 includes an objective to lower regulatory barriers to sidewalk dining to beautify and activate the streets in downtown.
* Sidewalk dining in the right of way is governed by municipal and state code as well as fire regulations.
* A work group of Town Inspectors, Fire and Police employees, business owners and the Chapel Hill Downtown Partnership reviewed the permit process and requirements and suggested ideas for streamlining the process that would still maintain safety. Ideas were then piloted by town staff and business owners over the past year.
* As part of the pilot, the work group identified regulations in the Town Code of Ordinances that were more restrictive than North Carol...
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