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The Danville Town Council is poised to vote on a measure Tuesday that would allow extended use of expanded outdoor dining areas such as parklets while putting in place new, stricter safety and design requirements.
The ordinance on the table at the council’s upcoming meeting would amend the town’s downtown business district ordinance, providing for the extension of expanded outdoor dining options until 2025 while putting design standards and guidelines into place.
The new requirements would also include a new fee schedule, along with provisions for alcohol consumption and some street closures.
The ordinance would mean a “streamlined over-the-counter process” with standardized designs that are pre-reviewed, according to chief of planning David Crompton in a staff report.
Custom parklets would require additional review “to ensure public safety and consistency with recommended design and development standards”.
If approved, the ordinance would allow businesses to continue operating expanded outdoor dining via the use of temporary land-use permits in adherence with new requirements and guidelines.
Some of these include using materials which are consistent with the downtown area and incorporating “materials and styles which are consistent with the architectural style of the adjacent building facade” when appropriate, along with fencing made of see-through materials with heights between 3 feet and 3.5 feet, and the use of only solar or battery power.
The ordinance would disallow the use of tents and temporary shade shelters for outdoor dining areas, with businesses being required to remove these from their property and sidewalk areas by Jan. 3.
Another component of the proposed new requirements would be an annual fee for businesses with parklets that continue to operate, depending on the amount of parking space lost to the structures.
The Danville Town Council is set to meet Tuesday (Oct. 4) at 5 p.m. The agenda is available here.
The extra seating works for a lot of restaurants/food establishments, like Yogurt Shack and Primo’s or in The Livery. However, much of the seating along the main street in Danville seems dangerous, like right on Hartz Ave., where cars drive by very fast, especially on weekend nights, and there is nothing but some flimsy metal gate between the seating and the narrow lanes on this street. My friends and family and I have sat a few times at a few different restaurants along this street recently at night and we did not feel safe at all, realizing how easily it is for a car to easily crash right into us. At least in Pleasanton they close the road down for this outdoor dining just during the dining hours.
Also, on another note, many Danville restaurants are closed at 8 pm on weekend nights or at 9 pm. This is too early. Also, they start cleaning up around you a half hour before closing and putting chairs on tables while you’re eating, so a restaurant that closes at 9 pm really doesn’t want you to stay past 8:30. You feel like you have to arrive somewhere by 7:30 pm at the latest and be finished by 8:30 for a restaurant closing at 9 pm or an hour earlier at the many places that close at 8 pm, even on weekend nights. Not all Danvillians eat early and are in bed at 10 pm on weekends!!!
• However, much of the seating along the main street in Danville seems dangerous, like right on Hartz Ave., where cars drive by very fast, especially on weekend nights, and there is nothing but some flimsy metal gates.
^ Installing reinforced cyclone fences or concrete barriers (similar to freeway dividers) along Hartz Avenue would remedy this safety issue.
• Not all Danvillians eat early and are in bed at 10 pm on weekends!!!
^ This practice is generally reserved for the elderly types who enjoy getting up early.
Eating a meal outdoors with car whizzing by blowing exhaust fumes sounds very unpleasant.
How about restricting Hartz Avenue traffic to EVs only?
Dining on Hartz does seem dangerous. I prefer indoor dining myself, but I want restaurants to make money and what’s best for Danville.
Another option would be having domed concrete pods erected along Hartz Avenue to provide protective outdoor dining with an indoor experience.
How about a ‘drive-in’ dining experience where the food servers bring dinner to your parked car?
They could attach a serving tray to each car door where a diner is situated.
That way the regular parking options remain viable along Hartz Avenue.
The only time this approach might not be feasible is if it is raining heavily outside but little tray canopies (resembling a dome tent) covering the food would solve matters.
Closing off Hartz Avenue to all traffic would accommodate more restaurant diners and ensure their personal safety from passing cars.