Open Plans Stages Guerilla Curbside Cafe Calling ForYear-Round Outdoor Dining
Popularity highlights appetite for year-round curbside options
Current program has seen 90% drop in participation from businesses
NEW YORK, NY—Today Open Plans hosted a guerilla streetery and press conference in the curb lane to protest the seasonal restrictions of the City’s current curbside dining law. The livability nonprofit is seeking to reform the Dining Out NYC program, which prohibits curbside dining from December to March. The stunt, free and open to the public, resurrected a popular outdoor structure that was forced to disassemble in December 2024, and highlighted New Yorkers’ appetite to take advantage of curbside options throughout the year.
City Council made curbside dining seasonal in 2023 when they passed a permanent version of the year-round pandemic-era Open Restaurants program; restaurant participation has dropped 90% as a result. Businesses opting out have cited the new burdens of disassembling, storing, and reassembling curbside set-ups multiple times a year. The new bill’s stricter design guidelines and fee structures have also stopped some businesses from continuing to participate.
“Permanent curbside dining was meant to help inspire a visionary reimagining of our streets to serve everyone, but this bill has virtually destroyed that vision,” said Sara Lind, Co-Executive Director at Open Plans. “By forcing this dynamic space to revert to parking for a third of the year, our leaders have once again balked at the bold action necessary to create a more people-centered city. Curbside dining is joyful, connective, equitable, and good for business; well worth prioritizing year-round. We urge the City Council to reform this program. Let's proactively support local businesses and give New Yorkers the joyful, accessible public realm they want and deserve.”
A press conference concluded the day, featuring remarks from NYC Comptroller Brad Lander and Transportation Alternatives Executive Director Ben Furnas, calling for reforms to the program including a year-round program, cutting red tape, loosening design restrictions, and easing financial burdens for small business owners.
"The City mismanaged its outdoor dining rollout at every turn. The requirements to get approvals are so onerous that restaurants find it confusing to navigate and City agencies can't even implement it,” said NYC Comptroller Brad Lander. “DOT's effort to streamline the process with conditional approvals still leaves restaurants operating at risk if other issues come up in final review that force restaurants to make big changes to their outdoor dining cafes. We need a smoother path forward that provides restaurants with timely approvals, supports thriving local businesses, and allows New Yorkers to enjoy dining outside."
"New Yorkers love outdoor dining, but the current program is too tangled in red tape to be successful," said Ben Furnas, Executive Director of Transportation Alternatives. "During the pandemic, New York City used less than .5% of our city's parking spots for outdoor dining and saved 100,000 jobs. Unfortunately, today, the city's outdoor dining program is too limited and demanding to be successful. New Yorkers deserve a real, permanent, year-round outdoor dining program now."
“New York is the greatest food city in the world, and there’s no reason our outdoor dining can’t be on par with Paris or Rome. It’s time to open the doors and invite New Yorkers to enjoy their meals in the fresh air,” said Council Member Keith Powers.
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