Sidewalk licensing program revised after successful pilot at Midori Martini and Sushi
The Mount Pleasant City Commission approved a revised sidewalk licensing program at its Monday night meeting.
City Manager Kathie Grinzinger said Mount Pleasant has had a sidewalk licensing program for many years, but, in early 2012, the commission revised the policy to allow for a pilot program.
“That test was the seasonal installation of an outdoor patio that extended into the public parking spaces to allow for outdoor seating and service,” Grinzinger said. “The commission allowed for a one-year trial of this initiative, with the understanding that feedback would be collected and the interim policy would be adjusted if any changes needed to be made.”
Midori Martini and Sushi, 105 E. Broadway St., was the business used in the pilot, and Grinzinger said all evidence collected from the experiment showed the patio was well received by the community.
The two main tweaks to the policy were made to provide clarity.
The changes state a four-foot minimum sidewalk clearance should include consideration of the door-swing measurements and any patio should meet standards set by the Architectural Barriers Act.
Commissioner Jon Joslin had questions about the revisions before the policy was approved.
“Have we always had the swing of the door in that calculation?” Joslin asked. “Why are we suggesting that?”
“I think we wanted to make sure that, if, for instance, a store has its doors open for a long period of time, say with Midori, that the four feet that we seem to be comfortable with as an accessibility requirement is still being met,” Grinzinger clarified.
Joslin said he was concerned it would limit certain businesses, but, after an explanation from Grinzinger, voted in favor of the revision along with his fellow commissioners.
Two minor changes were also made to the policy, including changing the word "outdoor" to "event" and requiring that merchandise tables now need to be placed close to store façade, rather than by the curb.
The rate for outdoor patios is set at $250 per full space or partial space/annually and is limited to no more than three spaces.
If a business wishes to purchase a parking space for permanent outdoor use, the cost is $7,500 per space annually.
A special not in the policy explained it is not to be used for the elimination of public parking spaces for personal and/or business parking usage.
The revision was approved with the understanding the insurance limits will be reviewed once more by city manager, city attorney and risk management company and then be adjusted as recommended before final implementation.
