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Item 9 - Outdoor Dining OpportunitiesOctober 20, 2020, Item #9M EM ORAN DLJ M City of Poway ADDITIONAL MATERIALS DATE: October 20, 2020 TO: FROM: Members of the City Council Steve Vaus, Mayor SUBJECT: Outdoor Dining Opportunities Summary: In the past several months the City Council has taken numerous steps to mitigate the economic harm suffered by local businesses as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. • April 16, 2020, approved the Poway Emergency Assistance Recovery Loans (PEARL) program, making financial assistance available to small businesses; • May 19, 2020, loosened restrictions on ordinances regarding signs and banners, relaxed prohibitions for exterior dining, deferred Development Impact Fees on construction projects, declared a moratorium on Business Certificate Renewals; • July 7, 2020, assisted local restaurants with outdoor seating by loaning picnic tables, giving them a greater opportunity to take advantage of the already-loosened restrictions on outdoor dining; • July 15, 2020, directed staff to create a policy for the Sharing Outdoor Spaces (SOS) Initiative, allowing houses of worship and fitness-oriented businesses to use public park areas for their activities. It is now October and pandemic restrictions, mandated by the State and County, are still in effect. Restaurants remain among the hardest hit. The relaxed policy on outdoor dining has been in effect for approximately five months and is a proven success. Restaurants can provide an enjoyable dining experience in a safe and positive manner. Many restaurants invested significant resources to create outdoor dining opportunities and it makes sense to allow this type of use in the future. I don't see a downside, and I believe my fellow Councilmembers will agree that we should continue to do all we can to help our local businesses. I also suggest extending the loan of picnic tables for their outdoor dining use. Recommended Action: I ask for Councilmembers' concurrence to direct staff to amend the Poway Municipal Code to allow for an increase in outdoor dining opportunities, post pandemic. I also ask for Councilmembers' concurrence to offer continued loan of the picnic tables for another 12 months, if the restaurants desire. Attachments: None. Reviewed/ Approved By Wendy Kaserman Assistant City Manager 1 of 1 Reviewed By: Alan Fenstermacher City Attorney Aprii? Chri H . City Manager