Newtown Approves COVID19 Outdoor Sales & Dining Resolution

On June 24, 2020, the Newtown Board of Supervisors (BOS) approved a resolution "establishing guidelines and policy for outdoor sales of merchandise and/or outdoor dining for existing businesses in Newtown Township during the COVID-19 pandemic" (click here to download the PDF version of the resolution.)

You might say this is opening a door that many businesses have already walked through. Several restaurants, for example, have already established their own guidelines (read, for example, "Solstice Restaurant Develops Health & Safety Guidelines for Dining Based, in Part, on Reopening Survey").

Other nearby municipalities - including Newtown Borough, Doylestown Borough, and Middletown Township - have already passed similar resolutions weeks ago. Newtown's resolution was modeled after Montgomery Township’s resolution and in accordance with CDC guidelines.

The first iteration of the resolution was discussed at the June 15, 2020, BOS Work Session (listen to the discussion here). At that time, Supervisor Kyle Davis and I objected to a provision that would make it virtually impossible for most restaurants to allow outdoor dining on public sidewalks in front of their establishments.

The contentious provision stated: "If a merchant proposes to use part of a sidewalk for outdoor sales of merchandise and/or outdoor dining, the merchant shall allow sufficient space for pedestrians and persons with disabilities to traverse the sidewalk while maintaining a minimum 6-foot distance between each person."

I contended that it would be impossible for the merchant to ensure a distance of 6 feet between diners and pedestrians walking on the sidewalk. This is clearly illustrated by the setup at the Green Parrot Restaurant on North Sycamore Street (see figure at the head of this article). The final resolution passed on June 24 excluded the 6-foot distance requirement (shown in bold text above).

Health & Safety Still a Major Concern: Businesses Must Submit a Plan

Of course, the Township's primary goal is to ensure that the health and safety of citizens are protected. To that end, the resolution states that "Prior to using any outdoor space to conduct outdoor sales of merchandise and/or outdoor dining, a merchant shall submit a plan to the Township for approval which shall depict the exact location of any outdoor merchandise sales and/or outdoor dining facilities, and shall describe the safeguards being employed by the merchant to protect the health, safety, and welfare of its patrons and the public."

The resolution automatically expires within 90 days of its passage, but the term can be extended beyond that by a vote of the Board of Supervisors.

Related content:

• “Middletown Township Moves Forward Helping Businesses Get Back to Normal After the #COVID19 Shutdown. Meanwhile, Newtown Moves Forward Too, But Much More Slowly”;
• “Newtown Borough Planning Ahead For Outdoor Dining Reopening”
• “Operation Doylestown Makes It Easier for Borough Businesses to Reopen During Yellow #COVID19 Phase & Beyond”
• Audio Podcast: “Getting Newtown Businesses Open Again”
• “PA Restaurants Can Open Outdoor Dining Rooms June 5 - But What About Restaurants Without Outdoor Seating Areas?”
• “Restaurants Reopening for Outdoor Dining: Closing Streets and Opening Sidewalks to Create al fresco Dining Rooms”
• “As Restaurants Remain Shuttered, American Cities Fear the Future - In Some Towns, 50% May Not Reopen!”
• “Safe Dining During #COVID19? Hard to Imagine, but Many Restaurants Are Trying. What About Restaurants in the Newtown Area?”