Vancouver considers waiving patio fees for restaurants, bars
The city is considering waiving patio fees for restaurants and bars this year, at a cost of about $1.2 million.
City restaurants applaud the move, but say keeping expanded patios a permanent feature of city life would benefit not only restaurants but the city itself.
“I think it helps the whole block,” said Brendon Chan, co-owner of The Basic, which has locations on Davie, Denman and Main streets. “Everyone's walking around, they stop to have a bite to eat ... it helps the businesses around here.”
Chan credited his local business improvement association with arranging temporary expedited patio program (TEPP) applications for the entire block of Main St. between 14th and 15th avenues.
City staff recently recommended waiving TEPP fees for all of 2021. TEPP allows restaurants and bars to apply for a free permit to set up a temporary patio connected to their location.
Businesses that have already paid for a temporary patio permit are eligible for a refund or can apply to extend their existing permit until October 31, 2021.
At The Basic, which is a breakfast restaurant, Chan said he uses every available patio table in the morning. A neighbouring restaurant, which serves lunch and dinner, takes the tables over when he closes.
Kristina Morra, manager at Andina Brewing Company in East Vancouver, said the TEPP allowed for “the best of both worlds.”
“In the summer, we would have had issues,” she said, noting that the brewery didn't have a patio prior to the program. She said that for many businesses the refund would allow them to recoup costs associated with building patios in the first place.
Morra said that patios are a way for businesses to “express themselves as a place.”
Seeing people on a patio encourages others to give a business a second thought, she said. “It makes them feel more comfortable.”
According to the city, there are five types of patios that qualify for the TEPP program. The main ones are: Curbside, which are located on the road or in parking spaces; sidewalk patios with and without railings and patios on private or partially private property (ie: partially on a sidewalk and partially on private property).
Staff estimated that the cost of processing refunds would be about $75,000. Roughly half of the cost of the $1.2 million program was already incorporated into the 2021 budget. The rest would come from city reserves.
The city has approved more than 400 temporary patios since June 2020, according to its website.
Indoor dining has been barred since late March, as it became clear the province was experiencing a third wave of the pandemic.
Everyone's walking around, they stop to have a bite to eat ... it helps the businesses around here.”
Brendon Chan, restaurant co-owner