Guidelines have been set out for patios and structures placed downtown Renfrew. Council discussed the matter as part of their virtual meeting Tuesday night (March 23rd, 2021).
The downtown seasonal encroachment guideline is not just limited to patios and covers signage, lighting, fencing and more. Town Planner Eric Withers says this policy is to ensure pedestrian or vehicular traffic is not impeded or hindered by structures such as signs, fences and patios.
Applications would need to be submitted each year for major encroachments such as patios and would go through the review process. Minor encroachments such as small signs in front of businesses would need to be taken down at the end of each day and cannot extend more than 1-meter from the building. Minor Encroachments do not involve an application process, but do require the tenant or owner to sign a waiver (at no cost).
One of the recommended items from the Renfrew County and District Health Unit was to have sneeze guards on the perimeter of patios since 2-meters of separation isn’t possible between those walking on the sidewalk and patio users.
The Town of Renfrew says a sidewalk corridor must be a minimum of 3-metres wide before a major
encroachment will be considered. A clear, unobstructed, pedestrian path of 1.8 meters wide would need to be kept at all times.
Some examples of the guidelines set out in the document include, but are not limited to, only allowing encroachments between April 15th and October 1st, patio operators would be required to turn the music off outdoors no later than 10:00pm (or in accordance with the noise by-law, whichever is stricter).
Owners/tenants must ensure that the encroachment area and furnishings are kept clean and in good repair at all times and that the encroachment setup is simple, tasteful, and removable. Outdoor heating is permitted in enclosures, but no garbage or recycling is allowed.
The regulations would be enforced through by-law officers with the town trying to work with the applicants to resolve any potential issues. If an operator fails to conform to the terms and conditions, the Town of Renfrew may order that the outdoor sidewalk patio be removed. If the operator fails to comply with the order within 24 hours the Town of Renfrew may have the outdoor patio removed, and all costs for removal will be billed back to those responsible. The Town shall use all means available to it to recover such costs, including collection of costs in like manner as property taxes.
The downtown seasonal encroachment guidelines were passed at the March 23rd meeting with all members of council in favour.