This will definately liven things up along Aurora Street, and there is a parking garage in the 200 block of Aurora, so what the heck. As long as they can find the money.
SIDEWALK DINING UP AGAINST THE WALL
Aurora St. eateries seek bigger sidewalks
By Jennie Daley
Journal Staff
ITHACA — Business owners on the 100 block of North Aurora Street are beginning to see the construction outside their restaurants as not just an inconvenience but, possibly, an opportunity.
Unrelated to the road work, the City of Ithaca this year began strictly enforcing the space limits for outdoor seating at restaurants on the block. Stenciled knives and forks were painted on the sidewalk to delineate how far from the building tables and chairs can sit. With the restrictions, some businesses lost more than half their seating.
Since the road is already torn up and traffic interrupted, restaurateurs see this as the perfect time to discuss eliminating the metered parking and extending the sidewalk to allow more room for tables, pedestrians and amenities like trees and trash cans.
Discussions about the reconfiguration are on a fast track in an effort to keep the sidewalk work on the same schedule as the road work, which is being done to replace an aging sewer system. Tom West, assistant city engineer, said plans and funding would have to be finalized by the second week in June for the sidewalk project to go forward this year.
To that end, West said the City of Ithaca's Board of Public Works gave him the OK Wednesday to take the preferred design to a meeting next week with business owners.
The suggested plan would eliminate the 13 metered spaces and have three areas where cars could pull over. Two of the loading zones, one in front of Simeon's and the other in front of the Commons Market, would be carry-overs from the current configuration with the zone in front of Commons Market potentially extended slightly. The third area for cars, in front of Contemporary Trends, is not defined yet and could be a loading dock or handicapped parking.
Along the rest of the block, sidewalks would be extended by about six feet. That extension would apply to the sidewalk from Viva Taqueria to Hal's Deli on one side of the street and from Ragmann's to Micawbers on the other.
That's great news for people like Doug Gruen, owner of Blue Stone Grill. He went from 16 outdoor seats to eight that are pushed right up against the building.
“It's kind of pathetically ridiculous how we have to squeeze everybody in,” Gruen said.
Tomas Harrington, general manager of Viva, said that in addition to having to try to appease customers unhappy with the outdoor seating arrangements, Viva has calculated that the eight seats they've lost cost them $5,000 each between May and August.
That lost revenue is especially tough on Viva, which pays an extra $7,000 to $8,000 per year for more expansive liquor liability coverage to insure their outdoor seating.
“There are businesses that are going to say it's not worth it,” Harrington said.
Mahogany Grill and Ithaca Ale House were notably impacted by the change. The Ale House's seating dropped from 22 chairs to 10.
The loss of such seating, restaurant owners contend, impacts not only their bottom line but also visitors' impression of the neighborhood.
“Really it is just so important when people drive by to have a vibrant bustling area,” said Harrington. “It's good for the Commons area, it's good for the whole town.”
Not everyone is sure giving up parking is such a great idea. Carolyn Grigorov has owned Contemporary Trends at the corner of Aurora and Seneca streets for 51 years and is the only non-food business on the block. While she's a supporter of outdoor dining, she'd like to find a solution that doesn't include the loss of so much parking.
“A lot of people don't go anywhere they can't park close to,” Grigorov said.
If the parking is removed, it's unclear who will be paying for the work. West said they haven't drawn up estimates yet but the project was not included in the city's 2007 budget. Normally, sidewalk repairs done by the city are charged to property owners but none of the involved parties is sure yet who would foot this bill.
West said the Department of Public Works hopes to have those questions answered in time for the Board of Public Works voting meeting June 13, when the board could make a decision on whether to proceed with the project.
jdaley@ithacajournal.com
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Originally published May 29, 2007
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