Proposal would allow restaurants in Lakeside Downtown Kincardine to set up seasonal sidewalk patios

In the midst of a brutal winter, imagining Kincardine at the full height of summer can offer a brief respite: a nice breeze coming off the lake, a group of teenagers jumping off the pier, the streets busy with tourists and young families headed to the Monday market, and the seasonal sidewalk patios set up outside Queen Street restaurants and packed with diners.

Okay, so the last detail may not be part of your image of Kincardines downtown, at least not yet.

A new tourism initiative approved by Kincardine council at its Feb. 19 meeting will allow downtown restaurants to set up sidewalk patios in front of their storefronts.

Community services coordinator Steve Murray told council the plan would mimic similar programs in other cities - the sidewalk patio having become a trend in the last couple of years - and offer a chance for businesses to increase their revenue and enliven the streetscape.

Business owners would be responsible for setting up temporary sidewalks on the parking spaces in front of their stores. Murray proposed charging a $200 fee for businesses to apply to set up a sidewalk patio each year, and an additional monthly fee of 25 cents per square foot to lease the space taken up on the sidewalk and in the parking space. In its report, staff recommended the fees be waived for the first year to encourage businesses to try it out.

Being someone who works downtown, I would personally appreciate being able to sit outside for lunch, Councillor Candy Hewitt said. And I know in other communities with policies like this, those seats are always the first to be filled.

There was some concern over the fee structure, and Councillor Ken Craig asked how staff arrived at the $200 fee.

Murray said it was the median fee found in other municipalities with a similar bylaw, but noted they would want to revisit it after they had a better idea how much it would cost to administer the program.

I dont agree with waiving the fee, Craig said. There is a cost to doing business. He recommended council charge 50 per cent of the proposed fee in each of the first two years so there was at least some cost recovery if businesses quit after a year.

Councillor Jacqueline Faubert thought the $200 fee was pretty steep and noted the median staff considered included the fees in big cities like Kingston, Ottawa and London.

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Proposal would allow restaurants in Lakeside Downtown Kincardine to set up seasonal sidewalk patios