Milton’s Town Council held a special Council meeting yesterday.
They unanimously approved a temporary outdoor patio extension program for local restaurants. The move follows the announcement of the Halton region joining most of Ontario with the shift to Stage Two.
Regional Councillor for Ward 3, Mike Cluett, says they got the green light to ‘go’ from the province. The Town just wants to make sure the local restaurants are at the starting line.
Councillor Cluett says there will be future discussions regarding Main Street closing to allow for more space for restaurants. He did add that he feels the negatives of that option outweigh the positives, saying that Main Street is a main artery of Milton’s traffic, and is too valuable to entirely shut down 2-3 times a week. That could be brought forward at a later Council meeting.
The move to open extended patios was done very quickly following the announcement of Halton moving to Stage Two. Town Councillor for Ward 2, Kristina Tesser Derksen, applauded Town Staff with their efficient work to write up a plan as fast as they did short-staffed.
She is a fan of the approved plan.
Councillor Tesser Derksen adds that it is a flexible plan that allows for adaptations when conditions ultimately change. She had initial concerns regarding the vagueness of the plan, and still stresses that business owners love working with certainties (regarding the deadline being set at October 31st for how long the temporary program will be in place). She says the plan didn’t provide too much of a clear path; however, the Town says the deadline was set just to have something on the horizon – adding that if it needed to be extended into the colder months, they can make that change.
Milton Mayor Gordon Krantz spoke on the patience of local business owners during a trying time.
“Milton’s business community has been patient and diligent in helping us move into Stage 2 of the Province’s reopening framework. Our local restaurant industry has been greatly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Through consultation with Milton’s Economic Recovery Task Force, the Milton Chamber of Commerce, the Downtown Business Improvement Area Association and the business community in general, we are pleased to help these businesses reopen safely with outdoor patio extensions.”
Owner of EddieO’s PourHouse & Kitchen in Milton, Eddie Olivera, was a delegate for the special Council meeting. He spoke as a business owner that, he admits, has now lost roughly $300,000 of the projected income for his restaurant. That restaurant does not have an especially large patio area. Olivera requested for the extended patio to not just include the parking lot, but even the sidewalk in front of the business.
Applications can be found online here. The Town stresses the importance of public safety measures such as fire code compliance, physical distancing signage, pedestrian access and safe vehicle circulation are in place. Milton Council temporarily waived fees associated with seasonal patios, with the exception of nominal fees legally required.
If you have any questions regarding the shift, you can email the Milton Economic Development Team at economicdevelopment@milton.ca.
