Wichita approves outdoor dining, sidewalk sales on public property another 5 years
Pandemic restrictions are gone, but businesses will still be allowed to use city property rent-free for outdoor dining and sidewalk sales for another five years.
The Wichita City Council on Tuesday unanimously granted the extension for the plan known as Open Air ICT.
It started as an emergency measure during the COVID-19 pandemic and allows businesses to use public sidewalks, on-street parking and other controlled areas for outdoor food service or merchandise sales on a daily basis, as long as they don’t block traffic too much.
Permits will still be required during the five-year extension, but no fees will be levied.
Originally passed in August, Open Air ICT was designed to help businesses struggling through the pandemic while occupancy of their interior spaces was limited in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
All COVID-related business restrictions have since been lifted.
But city officials decided that continuing the free permits would be a good thing even after the pandemic is over.
“They (businesses) did it at first because of COVID, and then they discovered that this would be something, even when we’re past the pandemic, that it’s a great thing,” said council member Cindy Claycomb.
Added council member Brandon Johnson: “I know that this was a big deal last year, I heard from a lot of businesses that appreciated it and I’ve heard from even more that want us to extend it.”
City Engineer Gary Janzen said the original program generated 15 permits, 11 to expand outdoors onto city sidewalks and four to use privately owned parking space. The city requires a permit to use private parking lots for outdoor business activity to ensure adequate parking availability in commercial areas.
During the pandemic, the city also waived fees for permanent sidewalk cafes, which would ordinarily pay $36 a seat or a maximum $360 a year. That fee waiver will also be extended for the next five years.
The estimated revenue loss for the 25 existing permanent cafes and 15 Open Air ICT permit holders is $20,000, Janzen said.
Janzen said he has more applications on hold from businesses that were waiting to see if the free use would continue past August.
Mayor Brandon Whipple said members of his Small Business Advisory Council supported the extension and more will probably do it now that it’s long-term. He said some businesses were reluctant to buy furniture and fencing required for outdoor alcohol service.
“One of the items of feedback I’ve heard is that businesses wanted to take advantage of this but they weren’t sure if they should make the investment knowing that it could go away in a year or they have to pay fees on it,” he said.
This story was originally published June 1, 2021 at 2:51 PM with the headline "Wichita approves outdoor dining, sidewalk sales on public property another 5 years."
