Blocked Street Zones
Open Restaurants can place dining areas at the curb or parking lane on the street in front of their business, but can’t block:
- Bike lanes
- Bus stops
- Car Share spaces
- Crosswalks
- Fire hydrants
- No Standing or No Stopping Anytime zones
Blocked Utility Cover
Dining areas can’t block access to or ventilation of utility covers.
You can report that valve, manhole, and ventilated grating covers are blocked by an outdoor seating area.
Table Not in Compliance
Curb lane seating on the roadway cannot exceed the length of business frontage or use space in front of other properties.
Tables must be removed or secured in place when not in use and cannot:
- Extend into the roadway more than 8 feet
- Extend beyond the business frontage
- Be less than 6 feet apart
Barrier Missing or Not in Compliance
To protect customers and ensure visibility by motorists, restaurants must separate curb lane seating from the travel lane with barriers. Barriers can be planters or objects of similar size and weight.
Barriers must be:
- At least 18 inches in width and 30-36 inches in height (excluding plantings)
- Marked with yellow high intensity retro-reflective tape or reflectors
- Placed directly next to each other with no gaps on all three sides of the seating area that is in the roadway
- No more than 8 feet from the curb
Platform Defective
To comply with accessibility guidelines, prevent the curb from becoming a tripping hazard, and allow drainage to pass under seating, restaurants may install platforms.
You can report platforms that are:
- Not connected with the curb
- Blocking rainwater drainage to or along the curb
- Blocking access to ventilation or utility covers
