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From Parking to Parklets
RESTAURANTS THRIVE
OUTDOOR DINING
By Tyler Wilkins news@flagpole.com
A few months after the start of the
COVID-19 pandemic, Athens-Clarke
County Mayor Kelly Girtz and the ACC
Commission shut down portions of down
town streets to allow restaurants to more
safely seat patrons outdoors.
In doing so, Athens joined a
long list of cities that are turning
over street space from drivers to
diners. Besides closing College
Square to traffic as part of a street-
scape project at the Broad Street
intersection, the commission
approved a “parklet” program
allowing restaurants to use up
to half of the parking spaces in
front of those establishments for
outdoor dining. Another program,
the “outdoor retail area” pilot
project on the westernmost block
of Washington Street, uses metal
barricades to block off parking
spaces and two lanes of traffic on
weekends to create outdoor space
for bars and retailers as well as
restaurants.
“I think this will make people
feel more comfortable coming
downtown to shop, knowing that
there is an option for outdoor
shopping,” Commissioner Melissa Link said
at a meeting last month.
These programs allow businesses to
recover some of the revenue lost during the
pandemic while helping to curb the spread
of the coronavirus. The risk of contracting
COVID-19 is substantially lower in open air,
according to the CDC.
In response to general support of the
parklets from the restaurant community
and a continual rise in COVID-19 cases in
Athens, the commission extended the par
klets program until Mar. 31 at its Nov. 17
meeting. Owing to concerns about weather,
the outdoor retail area pilot project was
extended only through the end of the year.
“I’ve eaten at several [parklets], and
it seems like they’re working well,” said
Girtz, who initially tasked a small group
with examining the possibility of adding
parklets. “A couple of businesses have said
it has made the difference between being
profitable and losing money this year, so
I’m glad for that.”
With a parklet set up on North Hull
Street, Trappeze Pub and other nearby
restaurants have observed an uptick in
customers, said Becca Johnson, the front-
of-house manager for the restaurant.
“Right now, everyone wants to sit outside,’
Johnson said. “We’ve been making a lot
more money than we would have if we
couldn’t have extra seating. I would defi
nitely like for it to stay.”
Outside downtown, a section of North
Newton Street between The Grit and
Taziki’s Cafe was converted into an out
door dining area about a month ago. The
commission previously considered halting
traffic from passing through that short
block and setting up chairs and tables on
the street years ago, but the proposal failed
to pass due to opposition from another
business.
Toby Cole, general manager of The Grit,
said that since the block has been converted
into an outdoor dining area he believes it
has helped attract customers. The Grit is
offering only take-out and outdoor seating
for the time being, and the blocked-off
area allows more patrons to sit outside the
restaurant and escape the noisy construc
tion on the other side of Prince Avenue that
can be heard from the sidewalk, Cole said.
Even after the threat of COVID-19
becomes less serious, Cole said, he’d support
a move by the commission for the Newton
Street outdoor dining area to become a per
manent fixture. Whit Richardson, owner of
Taziki’s, said he’d need to hear input from
the commission, other restaurant own
ers and Athens residents before deciding
whether he’d support the permanent instal
lation of the dining area.
“We have seen about half our customers
using the outdoor patio and half eating
inside, socially distanced,” Richardson said.
“We have not seen an increase in overall
sales. However, we have seen customers
who would have gotten take-out utilizing
the outdoor dining space.”
With the limited space available down
town, the pedestrian plaza at College
Square and the use of parklets could
become permanent, said Commissioner
Allison Wright. “I think they’re working
great,” she said. “We’re trying to balance
businesses being able to have the outdoor
capacity for people that are choosing to
gather and be in groups.”
As the temperature continues
to drop, customers may not wish
to dine outside in parklets. To
counteract this, at its last meeting
the commission approved the use
of portable, non-electric heaters
inside parklets.
With the temporary suspension
of open-container requirements
for servers passed by the commis
sion over the summer, restaurants
may serve alcoholic beverages
to their patrons inside parklets.
Bars are currently excluded from
requesting parklets, although some
wish to be included, said David
Lynn, director of planning and out
reach for the Athens Downtown
Development Authority. In a sur
vey distributed by the county to 20
bars, all but one indicated an inter
est in participating in the parklet
program if it were offered to them.
Of all 85 businesses that
responded to the county’s survey, 58 indi
cated an interest in participating in the
parklet program, while 15 businesses said
they’d opt not to participate, and 10 indi
cated opposition to the program entirely.
Those that expressed opposition to the
program in the survey were overwhelmingly
retail businesses. Lynn said he’s aware of
concerns from a few retailers over the loss
of street parking, but he’s not aware of
any widespread pushback on the parklets.
Wright said that because of the pandemic
fewer people are coming downtown, mean
ing fewer parking spots are needed. ©
Outdoor dining on West Washington Street.
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FLAGPOLE.COM | DECEMBER 2, 2020