Outdoor Dining In Elmhurst Pushed

ELMHURST, IL – A company that owns two restaurants and bars in Elmhurst is campaigning against proposals to reduce outdoor dining.

It is a reminder that while many downtown businesses are opposed to continuing the practice of using parking spaces for dining, some are for it.

Last week, Cloud 9 Restaurant Group, which owns 151 Kitchen & Bar and Pints bar in Elmhurst, sent a mass email titled, "Save Outdoor Dining in Elmhurst!"

No one on the City Council has suggested doing away with dining on city sidewalks, the rules for which were loosened during the pandemic.

But aldermen are considering ending "parklets," the parking spaces used for dining, a pandemic-era practice.

The board for City Centre, the group that represents downtown businesses, has come out against parklets. Merchants say that removing parking spaces for dining makes customer access harder.

By the city's numbers, eight restaurants used 23 parking spaces last year for parklets. That makes up 1.5 percent of about 1,500 parking spots downtown.

Cloud 9 asked people to reach out to their aldermen to show support for extended outdoor dining.

Such dining, the company said, creates a "vibrant" downtown, with a lot of people walking around. It also results in more jobs because of the added business, it said.

Additionally, the dining encourages new businesses to set up shop in downtown Elmhurst and keeps the city competitive with towns that offer street closures and expanded outdoor dining, Cloud 9 said.

Cloud 9 said it expects the City Council's Development, Planning and Zoning Committee to finalize recommendations on outdoor dining next week. The committee meets at 7 p.m. Monday at City Hall.

The committee is scheduled to release its meeting agenda later Thursday. It is likely to include the dining issue because officials want a plan in place as soon as possible for next summer.

Cloud 9 said it expected the full City Council to decide on outdoor dining a week later.