BOSTON (WHDH) - Five North End restaurant owners are suing Mayor Wu over her new outdoor dining policy, claiming it discriminates against white Italians.
The group says the new policy, which requires restaurants to take their tables off the streets, is unfair and not inclusive by specifically targeting restaurant owners in the North End.
“We do not want to sit in the back of the bus, we want to sit in the front of the bus with everybody else,” said Monica’s Trattoria co-owner Jorge Mendoza. “We want to have the same opportunity.”
The restaurant owners say that rules in the North End have been more restrictive than in any other part of the city. They initially filed suit over the $7,500 permit fees that were levied by the city last year, and now they are angry that they will not be allowed to set up tables on city streets this year.
According to the new policy, outdoor dining will be limited to sidewalks and patios.
Mayor Wu says the policy isn’t discriminatory and is instead citing safety concerns, including congestion in the North End.
“Our restaurant community is a key part of what makes Boston so special and what makes people want to come visit our neighborhoods,” Wu said. “We need to make sure first and foremost that Boston and every other neighborhood is a place for the people who live there.”
Restaurant owners are now waiting for a court date for the lawsuit they filed in Boston federal court.
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