Pandemic-era street closures aimed at helping downtown Novato businesses may become permanent, and business owners are offering mixed reactions.
The City Council voted unanimously on Tuesday to advance an ordinance that would close two blocks of Grant Avenue between Reichert and Machin avenues on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 5 p.m. to midnight. Mayor Pro Tem Eric Lucan recused himself from the vote, citing a real property interest on Machin Avenue.
Swinging gates would be installed to block traffic from entering, allowing restaurants to place tables in the street and retailers to set up display stands during the afternoons.
“I think this could actually be a catalyst for many great new things in our downtown,” said Councilwoman Susan Wernick.
Business owners could set up displays in parking spaces and tree wells, plus use an additional 2 feet into the street. Sidewalks would still be subject to existing regulations.
If approved at the council’s next meeting, the city could have the gates installed within 45 to 60 days, depending on supply, staff said. No cost estimate was provided.
The city closed the same two blocks from Friday afternoons through Sundays during the pandemic from June through October. After the program officially ended in March, several residents contacted the city to urge for the program’s return, said Will Morat, a city senior management analyst.
Not all business owners were happy about the closures, which lasted from 1 p.m. Friday through Sunday.
“The pandemic was devastating and the street closure further impacted us,” Beauty Heroes owner Jeannie Jarnot told the council on Tuesday. “I have been vocal about this because it’s really important to recognize that these street closures do not benefit all businesses.”
The proposed 5 p.m. to midnight closures were developed as a compromise between retailers and restaurant owners, according to the city. Many restaurant owners wanted the closures to begin at 4 p.m. to set up before the dinner rush and retailers wanted the closures to begin at 6 p.m., toward the end of the business day.
Lotus Curry House owner Surinder Sroa said the street closures helped his business “quite a bit” during the pandemic while also giving residents more freedom to stroll through downtown. That said, the pandemic is still ongoing and people are still hesitant to eat inside his restaurants, he said.
“Anything to help the customer, to help the business and bring it back to some kind of normal I think is good,” Sroa said.
Sroa said he supports the 5 p.m. closure given the concerns of neighboring business owners.
“You have to take care of everybody, not only one person,” he said. “You don’t want to hurt the other businesses. It’s not only the restaurants there.”
Mantra Wines owner Mike Kuimelis also supported the council’s proposal.
“In the evenings just to have music on the street and the little extra excitement that goes along with it was just a lot of fun for a lot of people,” Kuimelis said. “And we had so many compliments of people coming in and saying how much they enjoyed it.”
City staff intends to monitor the street closures for the next year to gauge whether to continue the program in future years.
“We appreciate the city taking the lead on this and feel it is a really great compromise for all of our businesses,” said Stephanie Koehler, president of the Downtown Novato Business Association.
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June 26, 2021 at 08:59AM
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