DISCUSSION
Amendment No. A-032-2021:
Currently, the Commercial, Office Professional, Industrial, and Open Space Development Standards in Chapter 9.16 automatically permit restaurant uses that include outdoor seating. In addition, there are limited special operating conditions and development standards for the use. Specifically, the operating conditions and development standards currently include: the outdoor dining area must be accessory to the Eating Establishment/Restaurant, the seating area must not encroach into any required setback, parking and/or circulation area, required landscape areas, or required paths of travel, and the outdoor dining areas shall have a clearly marked perimeter.
Updates to Title 9 of the Municipal Code under this Amendment are twofold: (1) updating the Special Operating Conditions for Eating Establishments/Restaurants with Outdoor Seating, and (2) adding Outdoor Dining as a use in the Parking Spaces Required for the C-1 (Neighborhood Commercial), C-2 (Community Commercial), C-3 (Heavy Commercial), M-1 (Limited Industrial), and M-P (Industrial Park) zones. The following discussion summarizes the proposed amendments to the Municipal Code. These proposed new standards and regulations are intended to improve the current character of the City’s commercial centers, and individual restaurants.
Special Operating Conditions and Development Standards:
To provide more guidance for the siting and design of the outdoor dining areas, new operating conditions and development standards are necessary. The proposed alterations to Section 9.16.020.050 (Special Operating Conditions and Development Standards) will help ensure the safe operation of the outdoor dining areas. These standards help provide clarity to restaurant owners and operators on how outdoor dining areas need to be designed and operated. The proposed Special Operating Conditions and Development Standards include:
- Distinctions between individual and joint outdoor dining areas
- Setback regulations
- Requirements for onsite location of dining areas
- Design standards, including openings and roof coverings
- Perimeter delineation requirements
- Accessibility, path-of-travel, and onsite circulation requirements
- Standards pertaining to the sale and service of alcohol
With much of the commercial and industrial zoned properties already fully developed, it is expected that the majority of outdoor dining areas will accompany restaurants already in operation. Current development patterns of older commercial and industrial zones do not allow for expansive outdoor dining areas. It is likely that the typical dining area will be a handful of café tables, and a railing installed in front of an existing restaurant. Other than a fence or railing to delineate the area, small awnings or umbrellas, and possibly minor ADA upgrades, construction and overall impact is expected to be minimal. The proposed special operating conditions and development standards help ensure the impacts will be minimal.
Parking Spaces Required:
The Amendment also proposes to add a new use in the parking regulations of Section 9.16.040.150 (Parking Spaces Required). “Outdoor Dining” would be a new use category for parking standards in the commercial and industrial zones.
The commercial and industrial zones currently require all outdoor dining to be parked at one (1) space per 100 square feet. In older centers, where parking is at a premium, the current parking standard is often cited as a major hindrance to providing more outdoor dining. To encourage the establishment of more outdoor dining areas, the proposed Amendment includes a caveat that outdoor dining areas 500 square feet and smaller do not require additional parking. By allowing the first 500 square feet of outdoor dining to be installed without additional parking, the expectation is that more restaurants will be able to install outdoor dining areas.
This will allow for those restaurants with existing patio spaces, or wider walkways adjacent to their restaurant spaces to add dining areas without adding new parking. It is expected that most restaurants could be within the 500 square foot threshold and exempted from providing additional parking.
Environmental Review:
The California Environmental Quality Act’s (CEQA) Class 1 exemption applies to existing facilities, including projects that do not exceed 50% of the floor area of the existing structure, or 2,500 square feet, whichever is less (CEQA Guidelines §15301(e)(1)). CEQA’s Class 3 exemption applies to: the construction and location of limited numbers of new, small facilities or structures, including accessory structures, such as garages, carports, patios, swimming pools, and fences (CEQA Guidelines §15303(e)).
Most restaurants adding outdoor dining areas are “existing facilities” as they already have an indoor dining space. Furthermore, most of the existing restaurants in the C-1 (Neighborhood Commercial), C-2 (Community Commercial), C-3 (Heavy Commercial), M-1 (Limited Industrial), and M-P (Industrial Park) have an indoor dining space of 1,000 square feet or larger, thus adding a 500 square foot outdoor dining area will not exceed 50% of the existing structure’s floor area. Implementation of the Amendment will require installing a limited number of fences/railings, and/or as requested, patio covers or similar canopies. No other permanent structures will be constructed as a part of the outdoor seating area. Thus, the Amendment is exempt pursuant to both the Class 1 (negligible expansion of an existing use) and Class 3 (new, small facilities or structures) exemptions (CEQA Guidelines §15301, and §15303, respectively).