From The Gazette
IOWA CITY - The City Council unanimously approved Thursday the second and third votes necessary to change an ordinance to allow sidewalk cafes that encompass the Pedestrian Mall's planters.
It also voted 7-0 to grant a permit to Saloon to become the first restaurant to put a cafe in a planter, which are the raised sections of the Pedestrian Mall that have trees and other greenery. Other permits will be granted on a case-by-case basis and reviewed annually.
There had been some opposition to the plan by people who feared losing green space in the Pedestrian Mall and the possibility of the cafes turning into beer gardens. But the council ultimately endorsed the concept as innovative.
The end game is that the city makes money from leasing the space. I'd like to see that money earmarked for an extra public safety officer, as I'm guessing the change to the Ped Mall is going to call for it. I'm mixed about this decision, but I'd say give it a year and then let's decide if this was a good idea.
1 comment:
Nice quote about 'innovative'! The quote Mr. M. Moen makes my stomach churn. Two friends and I were the only people at the city council meeting who were not Bar or Ped-Mall business owners and two of us spoke. Not one single person opposed to the plan mentioned beer gardens or alcohol consumption or anything like that. I wonder if the Gazette reporter was even there. The council members mentioned alcohol a few times because Mondo brought it up himself, probably to divert attention away from the issue from free access to so called public spaces
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