Subscribe to RSSAuckland City Rearranges Outdoor Dining Deck Chairs
The charm of outdoor dining or drinking in public hasn’t always been seen as such by officials.
I’ve lost count of the number of times some of my favourite spots have moaned that the council has been getting tougher on seating for customers outside.
And to be fair, there are times it’s hard to wade through diners when you’re walking the pavements where some restaurants and cafes are grouped together in close proximity.
Auckland City has now decided on a new system for businesses who operate outdoor dining facilities serving food and/or drinks on public spaces.
The council is recommending to change the basis for calculating outdoor dining fees from a per chair basis to a per square metre site basis from July.
KINGSLAND: Example where outdoor dining is popular
The current street trading licence fee for outdoor dining is $70 per chair.
The proposed new licence fee is $50 per square metre, plus an initial registration fee of $130.
Businesses with an existing outdoor dining licence will not have to pay the registration fee.
Pedestrians don't always get much room
Councillor Greg Moyle says that moving to a square metre basis will also clearly delineate the area of footpath available for street trading to ensure there is adequate space for pedestrians. He says this will simplify administration.
The council is inviting feedback on the proposed fee change. as part of a number of changes to the regulatory fees and charges for various services carried out by the council.
5 Comments
Makes sense although may be tougher to enforse. Imagine council officers walking along with a tape measure and calculator to determine how much to charge.
@Matt L I’m sure there’s a few meter people they could ‘promote’ to police this. I saw one yelling at a bus driver today and it was rather power crazy and unnecessarily ugly.
I find that the outdoor dining spaces are part of the charm of Kingsland. I’d be sad to see them go, if ever they do. Why doesn’t the council just widen the footpath in places where there are lots of cafes?
“I find that the outdoor dining spaces are part of the charm of Kingsland. I’d be sad to see them go, if ever they do. Why doesn’t the council just widen the footpath in places where there are lots of cafes?”
Because motorists are more rabid that the hospitality industry!
That said, they have done so in the past to some degree. But footpath widening can be pretty pricey, especially as you are going to have to widen it all the way, not only outside those houses where you are going to get some money for it.
That said, sandwich boards tend to be the greater offender in terms of blocking footpaths, because for every seat in total you get three sandwich boards, it seems. Dairies, liquor stores, takeaway places…
If it doesn’t provide at least 2m passage, ban the signs and seats. Apart from that, I agree with SJ, outdoor dining is a good thing.
There is a story about this in the Herald. The cafe’s and hospitality industry seem happy with the change.