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Restaurant patios permitted to open April 1

March 31, 2022   ·   0 Comments

By Sam Odrowski

Restaurants are permitted to reopen their outdoor patios tomorrow (April 1).

Orangeville Council unanimously approved a motion brought forward by Coun. Debbie Sherwood on March 21 to move up the opening from May 1 to April 1, which was done in 2020 and 2021.

The change in start date is seen as a way to support restaurants who may have customers that aren’t comfortable dining inside. It helps them drum up more business after facing significant losses due to COVID-19.

The patios will close on Nov. 30 as usual.

“My family and I actually were on a patio this past weekend in Orangeville, and honestly, it’s just nice to be out and about,” said Coun. Todd Taylor during the March 21 meeting.

“I think there’s some pent-up energy to have the public be out and about. St. Patrick’s Day, it was a lot of fun in town this past weekend, and there was room for spillover onto those patios.

“Whether or not you’re going to sit outside in the cold. That’s up to you. But at least there’s an option available for everybody,” he added.

Councillors also noted that because of the sidewalk reconstruction planned along Broadway later this year, there will be disruptions to local businesses, so it’s important to help them as much as possible. Having the patios open earlier in the year is seen as one way of helping them out.

Mayor Sandy Brown noted that the sidewalk construction will be restricted to small areas at one time to cause less of an overall disruption.

Gary Kocialek, general manager of infrastructure services at the Town, said from an infrastructure perspective, they’ll work to accommodate outdoor boulevard cafes and patios.

Part of Coun. Sherwood’s motion to open the patios earlier is to have town staff investigate their impact on downtown parking and determine the feasibility of permanently extending the opening from May 1 to April 1.

The motion to open the outdoor patios on April 1 was approved by Council 7-0.

Council’s next meeting is scheduled for April 11. 

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