Outdoor dining for Moody Street approved, despite Traffic Commission reservations

Outdoor dining is coming back to Moody Street on May 22.

An initial proposal to bring back outdoor dining over the summer cleared the City Council in early March. Ward 8 Councilor Cathyann Harris told the council at the time that she planned to go to the Traffic Commission to obtain permission for businesses to close down on-street parking spaces to create their outdoor dining areas.

At last Thursday’s Traffic Commission meeting, Harris argued that restaurant owners are having a difficult time financially this year and the city should support them with opportunities such as outdoor dining. 

Ward 9 Councilor Robert G. Logan said initiatives that involved removing parking spots to make Moody Street more pedestrian-friendly have been controversial, with some residents opposing it and others supporting the idea of closing down the street to car traffic entirely. Logan said the current outdoor dining plan, which doesn’t fully satisfy either side of the debate, was an “excellent compromise.”

Some members of the Traffic Commission expressed hesitance about moving forward with the proposed outdoor dining plan.

“I’ve always voted for [outdoor dining]. I’m not in favor of that this year,” said Wires Department Director Tim Kelly. He said outdoor dining blocks off too much parking on Moody Street, adding that he had observed fewer diners taking advantage of the program last year than he had seen in prior years.

Kelly moved to reject the proposal. His motion failed with only two votes.

City Clerk Joseph Vizard raised concerns about businesses setting up outdoor dining areas that reach beyond their own frontage on the street and shut down other parking spaces. He moved to accept the proposal with the condition that businesses won’t be able to create dining areas that extend in front of neighboring businesses. 

Ward 7 Councilor Paul S. Katz said the Licenses and Franchises Committee requires applicants to submit a map of their proposed outdoor expansion, adding that it could monitor the plans this year to make sure businesses follow the commission’s conditions.

The commission voted to approve outdoor dining between May 22 and Sept. 7.