BOSTON (WHDH) - Mayor Martin J. Walsh announced Wednesday that there will be increased outdoor seating for restaurants in Boston as owners are eager to open up their doors after the coronavirus pandemic forced dine-in service to temporarily stop.
The City of Boston Licensing Board, alongside the Public Improvement Commission, Transportation Department, and other agencies, have undertaken an unprecedented initiative to allow for expanded use of public spaces for outdoor dining.
The city received close to 500 requests for temporary extension onto outdoor space and already more than 200 businesses have received full or conditional approval to expand their outdoor space to serve patrons, the mayor’s office said in a press release.
Applications are continuously being reviewed and approved on a rolling basis.
“Boston is committed to a safe, phased reopening process,” Walsh said. “That includes helping our small businesses open safely and successfully, and we’ve been working wherever we can to remove barriers and provide new opportunities. The restaurant industry has been incredibly impacted by this global pandemic, and we’ve made helping the small businesses that make our neighborhoods and city so special a priority during this time.”
The Board, Transportation Department, Inspectional Services Department, Public Improvement Commission, and Public Works Department are waiving fees for the approved use of outdoor space for this program, on both public and private property, on a temporary, unprecedented setting basis.
The Board also voted last month to lift the preexisting condition of only serving alcohol with food on outdoor spaces citywide.
Several restrictions are being put into place, including tables must be a minimum of six feet apart from each other, tables cannot seat more than six people, workers must wear masks, and patrons must wear masks until they are seated at the table.
Outdoor spaces can remain open until 10 p.m. on weeknights and 11 p.m. on weekends.
Restaurants received approval from Gov. Charles D. Baker to reopen their doors as early as Monday for outdoor seating only as part of phase two of the state’s four-phase reopening plan. Indoor seating is expected to be approved in the later stages of phase two.
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