New West Hartford Outdoor Dining Layout Enters First Full Week

WEST HARTFORD, CT — Diners and restaurateurs in West Hartford have put the finishing touches on the first full week for an outdoor seating area crafted to get by until indoor coronavirus-related restrictions are lifted for eateries.

The travel pattern and parking configuration on four roads in West Hartford Center and at Blue Back Square started to be modified late last week to accommodate expanded outdoor dining for restuarants in the area. A total of 71 parking spaces on LaSalle Road, Farmington Avenue, Memorial Road and Isham Road were converted into to 11 on-street dining "corrals."

The expanded outdoor dining spaces will remain in place through October, town officials said.

The Department of Public Works began placing 40, 20-foot concrete barriers and 6-foot plastic water-filled barriers in position over a two-day period starting las Thursday.

Restaurants that have approved outdoor dining plans began using the new spaces this
week.

Visitors will encounter a temporary one-way travel pattern on a portion of LaSalle Road, from Arapahoe Road to Farmington Avenue (in a northerly direction); on Isham Road, from New Street to Memorial Road (in southerly direction); and on a portion of Memorial Road, from Isham Road to Raymond Road (in an easterly direction).

Farmington Avenue has been reduced to one lane in each direction from LaSalle Road to South
Main Street. The entrance driveway on LaSalle Road to the Public Parking Lot will also be
temporarily closed to vehicular traffic and motorists will be directed to enter via Farmington
Avenue.

The temporary traffic patterns in West Hartford Center will allow some of the parallel parking
spaces to angle parking which will add back 18 on-street parking spaces. In addition, the
configuration of parking spaces on LaSalle Road will be changed to head-out angled parking.
Head-out parking requires the motorist to back into the space, giving the driver a greater field of
vision when leaving.

Public Works crews have been blocking out existing parking lines and restriping the new angled spaces this week.