With such a short window of wonderful weather in Northern Ontario, more downtown restaurants are taking their business outdoors while they can.
As of the Victoria Day long weekend, Downtown Improvement Area restaurants and cafés were eligible to set up pop-up patios under the city’s new Sidewalk Patio Policy.
City Council lowered the barrier to entry for businesses to get in on the action in March by waiving the application fees and kicking in cash for those looking to build one of the temporary patios.
As a result, The Moose’s Cookhouse on Main Street became the first establishment to join Tiny Italy in opening up the opportunity for customers to dine with a view of downtown on Friday.
“We have had a good response from the businesses downtown,” said Beverley Hiller, the city's manager of planning services. “The patio season is just kicking off and we have had two businesses (Tiny Italy and the Moose Cookhouse) who have installed their patio's this year so far.”
The city’s politicians allowed Tiny Italy on Wyld Street to set up a patio for a pilot project last summer, which city staff deemed a success in creating an attractive and vibrant space.
Now, they’re hoping others will recognize the opportunity in enhancing the image and atmosphere of the downtown core.
“We were hopeful that businesses would see the success of Tiny Italy and choose to participate in the program,” said Hillier. “Council worked to ensure the process was as smooth and efficient as possible.
“We are very happy that the Moose Cookhouse has chosen to install a patio this year and look forward to working with other businesses in the future,” she added.
As part of the new policy, successful applicants could be eligible to receive up to $1,000 from the Downtown Community Improvement Plan (DCIP) towards construction costs and an additional $1,000 towards architect and engineer design fees.
By using the DCIP, businesses can tap into an existing resource that provides financial assistance for feasibility studies, facade/signage improvements and the revitalization/redevelopment of buildings.
“We don’t have any applications in the mill right now, but there were two or three other businesses that were looking at the opportunity,” City Councillor Mark King explained. “I would suspect that once they see what it looks like and how it will generate increased business, I’m sure there will be others that come forward.
“I think it’s probably one of the many steps that we need to take in the downtown core to create an environment that’s interesting for people,” he added. “I can only see it increasing the opportunity in the downtown core, but we need more of it.”
King said the patios can be a small component of the city’s ongoing attempt to more effectively tie the waterfront to the downtown core too.
Other ideas he mentioned included limiting a few select city blocks to pedestrian-only traffic, among others identified in the forthcoming Downtown Waterfront Land Use and Urban Design Plan.
All patios have to be temporary with fencing and be designed so that there is no change in grade between the sidewalk and pop-out.
If approved, the applicants enter into an annual sidewalk patio agreement with the city, which requires the business to maintain public liability insurance of $5 million.
More information about the process and how to apply for a sidewalk patio can be found the City's website at www.cityofnorthbay.ca/sidewalkpatio
