The parklet outside the Blue Owl restaurant on Canon Perdido Street in Santa Barbara was installed for free during the pandemic.
Owner Nadia Ajlouni says it's been essential to expanding her restaurant business.
"It increased our revenue as a business, which allowed us to invest more in the restaurant, and hire more people because we had more demand," Ajlouni said.
Ajlouni says restaurants with parklets are frustrated with changing rules and additional costs imposed by the city.
The pre-application fee for all parklets is $514, the parklet license application is $2,500, and once approved, there's a $24 per square foot fee each year.
"A lot of it is frontloading the cost without us knowing if we can keep the parklet or for how long," Ajlouni said.
The average restaurant operates at roughly a 5% profit margin, according to stats from the National Restaurant Association, which means large cost increases can be unsustainable, especially for smaller businesses.
"Whether I’m 900 square feet or 10,000 square feet, the cost is the same, which just feels a little rough and it’s not going to be sustainable for any small business," explained Alcazar restaurant owner Alvaro Rojas.
At Tuesday's Santa Barbara City Council meeting, council members voted 7 to 1 to allow businesses to pay just $154 upfront and the remaining cost as the process progresses.
According to the city council agenda report, fees are based on staff processing and review times. Additional fees for planning and design review will also be required.
Additionally, all businesses with parklets must install approved traffic safety barriers or must remove the parklet by March 14.
Fees apply only to parklets on side streets, not State Street.
