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Assisting Poway Restaurants with Outdoor SeatingJuly 7, 2020M EMQRAN DLJ M CityofPoway DATE: TO: FROM: July 7, 2020 Members of the City Council Steve Vaus, Mayor ADDITIONAL MATERIALS SUBJECT: Assisting Poway Restaurants with Outdoor Seating Summary: It's looking like, once again because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the State of California will prohibit restaurants from offering indoor dining. Our business community has already weathered tremendous hardships caused by closures and restrictions. Restaurants have been among the hardest hit. I believe we have an opportunity to assist the affected restaurants, and that this can be easily accomplished. I'm suggesting that the City purchase a number of picnic tables and make them available to Poway restaurants to expand their outdoor seating capacity. The last thing these restaurants need right now is to come up with cash to purchase outdoor seating furniture of their own. They simply don't have that kind of discretionary cash on hand. On the other hand, the City can purchase picnic tables and loan them to restaurants. When the need no longer exists at restaurants, we can use the tables in parks throughout the City. This is a win-win for all concerned. We have already loosened restrictions by making it very easy for restaurants to expand outdoor dining areas into streets and parking lots by eliminating paperwork. Now, we can help a bit more by providing the actual picnic tables that many of these restaurants do not have on hand. We need to pull together and make this as easy as possible for our local businesses Recommended Action: I ask for Council members' concurrence to direct staff to proceed with the purchase of picnic tables to be temporarily loaned to Poway restaurants for the expansion of outdoor dining areas. Once the restrictions on indoor dining are lifted by the state, we can retrieve those picnic tables that were out on loan and put them into service in Poway parks for all to enjoy. Attachments: None. Reviewed/Approved By .,Jµ.~ ,____ Wend Kaserman Assistant City Manager 1 of 1 Reviewed By: Alan Fenstermacher City Attorney Approved By: City Manager