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Home My WebLink About~Master - Regulating Sidewalk Cafes ORDINANCE NO. 3125 AN ORDINANCE TO AMEND THE MUNICIPAL CODE OF THE CITY OF AMES, IOWA, BY ADDING THERETO A NEW SUBSEC- TION 22.4(3) FOR THE PURPOSE OF REGULATING SIDEWALK CAFES; PROVIDING A PENALTY AND ESTABLISHING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. BE IT ORDAINED, by the City Council for the City of Ames, Iowa: Section One. The Municipal Code of the City of Ames, Iowa is hereby amended by enacting a new subsection 22.4(3) as follows: 11(3) Sidewalk Cafes. The purpose of this subsection is to set forth the conditions and requirements under which a sidewalk cafe, as defined, may be permitted to operate by Temporary Obstruction Permit on a public sidewalk within the City of Ames. (a) Definition. A sidewalk cafe is any group of tables and chairs, and its authorized decorative and accessory devices, situated and maintained upon the public sidewalk for use in connection with the consumption of food and non-alcoholic beverages sold to the public from, or in, an adjoining indoor restaurant. (b) Where Permissible. A sidewalk cafe shall be permitted only in zoning districts which allow indoor restaurants and then only if the sidewalk cafe is contiguous to an indoor restaurant and the cafe's operation is incidental to and a part of the operation of such contiguous indoor restaurant. A sidewalk cafe shall be located on the public sidewalk immediately contiguous to and abutting the indoor restaurant which operates the cafe, provided that the area in which the sidewalk cafe is located extends no farther along the sidewalk's length than the actual sidewalk frontage of the operating indoor restaurant, and all other applicable provisions of this article are fulfilled. (c) Alcoholic Beverages. The service of alcoholic beverages to customers using the sidewalk cafe is prohibited. (d) Number of Sidewalk Cafes. An indoor restaurant shall be permitted to operate only one sidewalk cafe, and each sidewalk cafe shall be confined to a single location on the sidewalk. (e) Sidewalk Clearances. A sidewalk cafe shall be permitted only where the sidewalk is wide enough to adequately accommodate both the usual pedestrian traffic in the area and the operation of the proposed cafe. A sidewalk cafe shall not occupy more than 50 percent of the sidewalk's width at any point as measured from the curb or parking meter or planter, whichever is closer to the building, and there shall be a minimum of four (4) feet of sidewalk width clear of obstructions. (f) Table and Chairs, Location and Requirements of Furniture. All tables and chairs comprising a sidewalk cafe shall be set within the 50 percent of the sidewalk measured from the indoor restaurant building exterior wall, and shall not be situated within eight feet of any designated bus stop, and 20 feet from any street intersection. All outdoor dining furniture, including tables, chairs, umbrellas, and authorized accessory items, shall be readily movable. "Readily movable" shall mean that no object as stated above, which is part of the sidewalk cafe, shall be leaded, cemented, nailed, bolted, power riveted, screwed-in or affixed, even in a temporary manner, to either the sidewalk on which the sidewalk cafe is placed, to the building, or to any other structure which the sidewalk cafe abuts. Umbrellas must be secured with a minimum base of not less than 60 pounds. Outdoor heaters, fans, air conditioners, amplified sound, or speakers are prohibited. (g) Signs shall not be allowed at any outdoor cafe, except for the name of the establishment on an awning or umbrella fringe. (h) Insurance Requirements. Sidewalk cafe owners shall procure and maintain, for the duration of the Temporary Obstruction Permit, insurance against claims for injuries to persons or damages to property which may arise from, or in connection with, products, materials and services provided. Sidewalk cafe owners shall furnish the City of Ames with certificates of insurance, written by a company authorized to transact business in the state of Iowa, evidencing the following coverages: (i) Comprehensive general liability with limits no less than $500,000 combined single limit. (ii) Combined single limit per occurrence for bodily injury, personal injury and property damage. The policy shall name the City of Ames as an additional named insured and require 30 days written notice of cancellation. The coverage shall be a least as broad as the ISO Form Number 2 CG0001 covering commercial general liability written on an occurrence basis only. (i) Delineating Sidewalk Cafe Area. The sidewalk cafe shall be delineated by barriers separating patrons from the pedestrian traffic on the sidewalk. The detailed requirements for each sidewalk cafe will be determined as warranted. The barriers will be within the 50 percent of the sidewalk designated for the sidewalk cafe, or to ensure a minimum of four (4) feet of sidewalk width clear of obstructions. (j) Food and Beverages. A sidewalk cafe shall serve only food and non-alcoholic beverages prepared, or stocked for sale, at the adjoining indoor restaurant. (k) Service Requirements. The outdoor preparation of food and busing, or service stations, are prohibited at sidewalk cafes. The presetting of tables with utensils, glasses, napkins, condiments, and the like is prohibited. All exterior surfaces within the sidewalk cafe shall be easily cleanable, and shall be kept clean at all times by the permittee. Restrooms for the cafe shall be provided in the adjoining indoor restaurant, and the cafe seating shall be counted in determining the restroom requirements of the indoor restaurant. (1) Trash and refuse storage for the sidewalk cafe shall not be permitted within the outdoor dining area, or on adjacent sidewalk areas, and the permittee shall remove all trash and litter as they accumulate. The permittee shall be responsible for maintaining the outdoor dining area, including the sidewalk surface and furniture, and adjacent areas in a clean and safe condition. (m) Days and Hours of Operation. Sidewalk cafes shall operate on days whenever fair weather would enhance outdoor dining from the dates of April 1, to October 31, of the said given year that the Temporary Ob- struction Permit was issued. The hours of operation are limited to between 7:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. Tables, chairs and all other furniture used in the operation of an outdoor cafe shall be removed from the sidewalk and stored indoors at night, and whenever the cafe is not in operation. The City shall have the right and power, acting through the City Manager or his designee, to prohibit the operation of a sidewalk cafe at any time because of anticipated or actual problems of conflicts in the use of the sidewalk area. Such problems and conflicts may arise from, but are not limited to, scheduled festivals and similar events, parades or marches, repairs to the street or sidewalk, or from demonstrations or 3 emergencies occurring in the area. To the extent possible, the permittee shall be given prior written notice of any time period during which the operation of the sidewalk cafe will be prohibited by the City, but any failure to give prior written notice shall not affect the right and power of the City to prohibit the cafe's operation at any particular time. (n) Findings and Conditions. In connection with granting approval for any Temporary Obstruction Permit for a sidewalk cafe, the City Manager shall make findings that the proposed operation meets the limitations of this subsection, and the Manager may impose such conditions in granting approval as are needed to assure that the proposed operation will meet the operating requirements and conditions set forth in this article, and to assure that the public safety and welfare will be protected. (o) Term and Renewal. A Temporary Obstruction Permit for a sidewalk cafe shall be approved by the City Manager for a maximum period of one year. Thereafter, the City Manager, if an extension appli- cation is filed prior to any expiration date of the Temporary Obstruction Permit, may extend the permit for additional periods, not to exceed one year each, following review and approval of the cafe's operations. In the event the City Manager decides additional or revised conditions are necessary, to which the applicant objects, or if the City Manager decides that the permit should not be renewed at all, the application shall be referred to the City Council, which shall hold a public hearing and thereafter decide the matter. The City Manager may make any renewal of a Temporary Obstruction Permit subject to additional and revised conditions and requirements. Any renewal granted by the City Manager shall not exceed a period of one year. All applications shall be filed with the City Clerk, who shall refer them to the City Manager. The City Clerk shall maintain the records of permits issued, denied, or revoked. (p) Revocation. A Temporary Obstruction Permit may be revoked by the City Manager, following notice to the permittee and a hearing, upon a finding that one or more conditions of the permit or of this article have been violated, or that the sidewalk cafe is being operated in a manner which constitutes a nuisance, or that the operation of the sidewalk cafe unduly impedes or restricts the movement of pedestrians past the sidewalk cafe. 4 Section Two. Violation of the provisions of this ordinance shall con- stitute a municipal infraction, punishable as set out in Section 1.9, Ames Municipal Code. Section Three. This ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage and publication as required by law. Passed this 9th day of April 1991. yl�' -t c Nancy Dioni ', City Clerk Larry R. urtis, Mayor 0135 5