City of Loveland drafts guidelines for sidewalk patios

LOVELAND -- The owner of Terazas Not Just Gyros says the patio seating in front of her downtown restaurant is "absolutely" important to her business.

The city wants to encourage such open-air dining by allowing businesses to encroach on sidewalk rights of way, but it's taking steps to maintain high standards.

"It really does liven up our downtown," said Bethany Clark, a planning technician with the city's Community and Strategic Planning Division. "We just want to make sure they are done in an appropriate way."

So city departments have been working since last fall on a set of design guidelines to govern the way downtown businesses use the city right of way.

The intent, Clark said, is to ensure that quality materials are used that are compatible with the character of downtown and that pedestrians still have enough room to safely navigate the sidewalks.

The guidelines, still in draft form, were presented to the Loveland Downtown Team at its meeting Tuesday morning. Clark asked members of the team - city employees and council members, downtown business owners and other residents - for feedback on the rules and advice on seeking feedback from businesses.

The city plans to launch an outreach effort to residents and business owners before any guidelines become permanent. No City Council action will be required for adoption.

Clark said the city isn't planning to approach any of the handful of downtown establishments that already have semi-permanent sidewalk enclosures in place, unless they didn't obtain the building permit that always has been required before installing a structure.

The new guidelines will retain that requirement for a permit, and if adopted, they will add specific stipulations for the encroachment.

A few of the details:

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City of Loveland drafts guidelines for sidewalk patios