Some “misinformation” and social media posts led to quite the stir for residents, business owners and elected officials alike in the village of Kenmore.
Some were concerned the village board was voting to ban or severely limit outdoor dining and music, but turns out, the board was actually looking to loosen a 2004 law that they say served as a roadblock.
As Trustee Brittany Jones explained, up for modification was a local law that actually prevented many businesses from even seeking clear permission to utilize certain outdoor spaces, parts of village property or have furnishings on sidewalks.
"I think the message got out that this was a complete addition that hadn't been in the code, but it isn't," said Jones. "This has been on the books for years, and so right now, we're just trying to make small changes to be considerate to businesses that are trying to do great business here, and to the residents that want to make sure that the community stays the way it always has been."
The trustees voted unanimously to modify the 20-plus year old law to now allow bars and restaurants to go directly to the village board for outdoor dining and furniture permission. Officials indicated the permit would cost $100 annually.
Kenmore Mayor Patrick Mang said it’s the first phase of making those types of offerings easier to attain for Kenmore’s growing restaurant scene.
“I think a lot of people got misinformation on Facebook. As through the meeting, the law has always been on the books," said Mang. "All we did was tweak the law to allow more businesses to take advantage of it, and that's all we did at this time. We wanted to give them that opportunity to take advantage of it as soon as they can with it. You know, with the summer starting up.”
Alyssa Massey, a Kenmore resident and part-time bartender at Delaware Avenue’s Fattey Beer, said during the meeting she hopes Kenmore sets local laws to work for small businesses and the people who support them.
“We should be cutting red tape, not tightening it," she said. "We should be saying yes to the vibrancy, to entrepreneurship and to the pursuit of happiness right in our village.”
While a ban on regular outdoor music technically remains in place, village officials have not enforced it for small scale "background music" that residents say is played at a Kenmore coffee shop. Mang indicated the board will be looking at possible adjustments to the outdoor music ban.
Currently if a business wants to play music outside, they can only use an individual special event permit.
