...Title
Al Fresco 2.0. (Ortiz, Tordillos, Kamei, Cohen, and Mulcahy)
...Recommendations
1. Direct the City Manager’s Office to:
a. Explore permanently re-establishing the Al Fresco outdoor dining program in the City of San José, for supporting economic development and small businesses in designated growth areas, including Greater Downtown San José, Urban Villages, and Business Improvement Districts (BIDs).
i. Evaluate opportunities to modernize and expand the program beyond basic table-and-chair setups by establishing a clear, predictable permitting pathway for more complex outdoor dining configurations: such as patios, railings, pergolas, and semi-permanent structures, while maintaining a low-barrier, by-right process for simpler installations, and review best practices from peer cities, including San Francisco’s Shared Spaces Manual, to inform the development of clear design standards and streamlined administrative processes.
b. Designate Public Works staff to serve as a coordinator for Al Fresco and outdoor dining applications, responsible for facilitating interdepartmental review and ensuring timely coordination among Public Works, Planning, Building, and Code Enforcement, Fire, Transportation, and any other relevant departments, to reduce duplicative review, minimize delays, and provide applicants with an understandable and consistent permitting pathway.