Vendome Café patio space up and running for summer
Thanks to a well received pilot project more makeshift patios will be gracing the exteriors of Calgary dining establishments. If businesses meet the proper requirements that is.
Calgary’s first pop-up patio at Vendome Café in Sunnyside was only up and running for one month last year but has recently opened for the 2013 season and will be used by the city to gauge the success of the new initiative. Ald. Druh Farrell says the location has “all the conditions to be successful.”
The patio is adjacent to the sidewalk beside the popular eatery and manager Heather Furber is optimistic it will become a permanent fixture during warm weather. “It’s a beautiful patio — it has full sun for most of the day” she says adding that people are enjoying it. “We’ve never had any complaints or concerns at all.”
The pop-up patio project is part of the Transforming Government initiative — an effort to include citizens and organizations in the development of the city — and aims to increase outdoor dining space. A second pop-up patio has opened at Bite in Inglewood and three more are in the works in the Kensington area.
Farrell expects more of these patios will make appearances in established communities and the centre city where there is often little to no room for outdoor dining and says they will add value and vitality to city streets.
“Outdoor cafés are a sure way to improve walkability and improve the sense of community” she says. “Now it’s up to the individual businesses to determine if they’re interested and then the city will help them determine if the project’s appropriate for them.”
When an existing restaurant or bar applies to develop an outdoor patio the city will take into consideration any impacts to the surrounding community or streets. If necessary approvals are granted these patios can be constructed and located on city sidewalks or curb lanes in private parking areas or on a combination of the two. Five patio project types currently exist and permit requirements vary depending on the circumstances ranging from development permits (for patios constructed on private land) to licences of occupation (for structures built on city land). If curb lanes become part of a patio’s space businesses must compensate for lost parking revenue.
Not all locations are suitable for pop-up patios though and venues such as those located on 10 Street N.W. — where lane reversals occur twice daily — are not eligible for the city’s outdoor café approval.
