Outdoor Dining Fees Opposed by Business Owners In Yardley

YARDLEY, PA —For the past few years, outdoor dining could be found throughout Lower Bucks County as businesses tried to find ways to survive during the COVID-19 pandemic.

But now that things have stabilized, borough officials want to charge restaurants fees for that service. And the pushback they're getting from business owners has officials reconsidering those fees and have received is causing the borough to consider changing its outdoor dining ordinance.

"We had wanted to make things more business friendly," Councilman John McCann had told the 10 business owners attending last month's community & economic development committee meeting. "We granted outdoor seating and saw the tents go up. A lot of businesses made it through a difficult period. But now things are going back to normal."

The committee will meet again with business owners at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday before the Borough Council meeting.

The borough has a permit fee of $1,275 for outdoor dining but the ordinance has never been enforced.

Don Carlson, then planning commission chairman before he was added as a replacement to the council last month, told McCann in a letter that the "current fee schedule that imposes a $1,275 fee no matter how small the outdoor seating is overkill."

Carlson also suggested waiving the permit fee for restaurants with eight seats or less.

At the meeting, McCann outlined that the fee would be reduced to $90 and then have to be renewed every three years. "You're basically paying $180 for four years."

McCann said he anticipates that proposal going to Council in November.

The permit would run from Nov. 15 through April 1 when canopies need to be removed, McCann said.

Businesses like the Continental Tavern, Vault, Canal Street Grill and LaLa Lobster would be impacted.

"It's insanity," said Fred Rubina, whose wife Nicole owns LaLa Lobster.

"Everyone is saying the cost is huge, but we're not making any money off of this," Borough Manager Paula Johnson said.

Greg Rocca, the president of the Yardley Country Club, wondered what impact the ordinance might have on his business.

"You're making amendments to an existing ordinance," he said. "This is all new to us."

Council President Caroline Thompson had stated that the reason for the ordinance was the fact that seating capacity at some restaurants has doubled.

"That's really significant," she said. "That's why we're regulating it."

McCann said the meetings were scheduled with business owners "in the hopes of gatherings ideas to inform the committee’s recommendations to Council for modifications to the ordinance."

"We're a growing town," he said. "No one looked at this. The restaurant business is growing post COVID."