Editorial: Palm Beach Town Council made wise move in agreeing to extend outdoor seating to Labor Day
The end of the road is right around the corner for outdoor seating at some island restaurants. Luckily for diners, we're still a few exits away from getting there.
That's because the Town Council wisely voted Wednesday to extend its temporary outdoor-seating program until Labor Day. By bringing more seats outdoors, the program, which was started in 2020, splendidly helped restaurants get through the pandemic when most people did not want to dine in confined indoor spaces.
The program originally was scheduled to conclude at the end of the Memorial Day weekend but council members — who were at first reluctant Tuesday to extend the program before reconsidering the next day — realized there was not enough time for restaurants to apply for permanent outdoor seating by the end of the month.
Smart move. And it would be even shrewder for the 20 restaurants in the temporary program to apply for permanent seating outdoors. Why? Besides the fact that people actually enjoy eating outdoors, there is always the possibility of another variant rearing its ugly head. While we, of course, hope that doesn't happen, it would be prudent for town leaders to retain a flexible attitude, should another extension be needed in the coming months.
Council members, though, cautioned Wednesday that the permanent program's application process was “lengthy” and “costly,” so the town may want to look at ways to make it less cumbersome. Spokesmen for some island restaurants have already told the Daily News that they do not plan on applying for it.
Though there have been some legitimate complaints from the town about some "bad actors" in the temporary plan who added indoor and outdoor seats beyond their approved capacities, it has been a resounding success that helped keep many places afloat during the dog days of the pandemic.
The island's plentiful outdoor dining was a welcome attraction to many from other parts of the county who came to the island seeking a warm-weather retreat during the health crisis. The delights they found in Palm Beach helped stimulate the local economy and boost the island's real estate market, sending property values soaring.
Kudos to the town and the restaurants for running such a well-received program. But beware. We're not at the end of the road — though you can see it from here.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Palm Beach Town Council wise to extend temporary outdoor seating program
