Councilors approved Oregano's after owner Claude Elias filed a new plan that accommodated the need to allow 8 feet of usable space with 12 feet of pedestrian clearance.
Each restaurant owner seeking to serve alcohol outdoors must meet specific regulations. The restaurant must put up barriers to enclose the area from the public way, and the manager or restaurant personnel must also have a clear view of the alcohol service.
The barricades and the outdoor furniture cannot extend beyond the 8 feet that is required.
At-large Councilor Kathleen O'Connor Ives, a vocal opponent of the Oregano's initial application, voted to support the new design Monday.
"A couple of my concerns were addressed," she said, including allowing space for pedestrian clearance and the tables not "jutting out onto Inn Street."I'm glad the concerns were addressed. I'm just still not clear on why they weren't addressed prior to the council's prior vote when they denied Oregano's request but approved two others. Either the councilors didn't make their concerns known during the committee meeting held separately from the council meeting or they did raise the point only to have it ignored by the restaurant's owner.
But anyway....
Last week I learned that the Andaman's Thai Restaurant is serving food on the roof top seating on the Water Street Tannery building. They can't, however, serve alcohol. I'm guessing the worry is that restaurant staff can't guard against under-aged diners from sneaking a drink because they won't be watching every second of the meal.
I'm not sure if this is a state or city requirement, but it seems like a serious bit of overreach to me. How many times have you tried to hail a server with no success? It's unrealistic to think that waiters, waitresses and manages can watch every second at every table.
Ah well, no matter. I look forward to dining at what must be one of the best seats in the city.
3 comments:
Legal silliness about alcohol knows no borders.
Here in Thailand, it is illegal for a store to sell alcohol between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m.
I assume it's some screwy "the kids might try to cage a drink after shool" law (pushed, no doubt, by the bar owners who want a three-hour monopoly).
There's also the fact that many students -- and I'm talking Thais who look like they're in fourth grade -- drive motorcycles to school, so maybe that's a factor.
Forgive me if this has been stated somewhere, but is the city getting paid any kind of rent by these restaurants for the use of the sidewalks?
No.
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