Welcome to the work session for the Vilger Plus Bill.

Today is Monday, March 24.

And uh we are beginning our work session before we look at eight o'clock.

First item on our agenda for conversation is the question of whether or not to provide the concrete barriers that have been provided in recent years on Wheeler and Washington Avenue for outdoor seating during the spring and suck.

Quite a bit of chatter on this subject back and forth today.

We received quite a number of emails.

I would say anecdotally, probably half in favor, half opposed.

Um and I will uh speak for myself in saying everybody's right.

This is a classic circumstance where we have to make some decision in a circumstance when there is a very legitimate claim to do it, and in I think a very legitimate claim not to.

So comments from the colleagues.

Sure, I can start.

So I kind of took it also upon myself to go visit many of the other businesses on Wheeler or speak to them just to kind of get their feel on this proposal.

So from the majority of the business owners, it seems like they are in support of this as a whole.

Um, they understand that obviously it takes two spaces away, but it's only two 15 minute spaces that it takes away.

So in that aspect, if anyone was advocating for the businesses, saying this is impacting them and how negative it could be, the majority of businesses, at least that I spoke to said it didn't really make a huge difference to them in that end.

So at least that's just from me talking to a bunch of different business owners on Wheeler Avenue specifically.

The other part was that the question was then brought,

you

know, are you aware that the proposal for the um

the

section on Wheeler?

It's more of a public space where you can get something from, let's say, your your deli or your restaurant and essentially go eat it there.

And many weren't aware of that.

But when they did find out about that, it was even more appealing to them.

Um, a big thing that I saw was that the biggest reason why people, why the businesses supported it was because they're supporting their neighbors.

Essentially, anything that can help any business um, you know, do better if they looked at it as positive.

But when they found out that there were the ability to have someone else eat there from their own place, they were more to favor for that.

Um, I did speak to also, for example, in Frank and Joe's, they have a couple of chairs out there, and they said they have people sometimes that buy from other places and sit out there and they don't mind it.

So that seems to be the sentiment from a lot of Wheeler Avenue food establishments, at least that I spoke to.

The biggest concern more that I saw that they had was enforcement of parking itself on Wheeler Avenue that causes there to be just nowhere to park and nowhere to stop and get something.

And they weren't really concerned about those two spots in particular because they're like it brings people in there to sit and people can enjoy it, but it's more the concern that and this I'll keep obviously confidential, that there's a lot of

you're not too confidential.

No, no, no.

I'm keeping that uh the confidential part of what I was told by different business owners.

Yes, was their concern more was that there is employees and owners of businesses on Wheeler that are parking on Wheeler on days that were either it's not enforced anymore, um, or on Sundays there is no enforcement, so they just parked their car completely all day, and there's still businesses trying to operate, and they don't have like the ability of saying Frank and Joe's, for example, doesn't have the ability to get pick up because if someone just parked there all day because there's nobody enforcing parking on a Sunday, or if we're not as a village enforcing parking on a Saturday where it's a lot busier, there's the you know the farmers markets with different things going on, but if we as a government are not enforcing those 15-minute parking right there, then it impacts everyone.

That seems to be more the concern than giving up to spaces for people in the community to be able to enjoy.

So in all of that, and then just speaking to different people.

The next question is you know, if we give it to one person, one business, do we need to give it to others?

Is it fair?

As far as I know, we've only had two businesses that have inquired about this.

It's invalid on Washington Avenue, and it's been sold on Wheeler.

And I do believe that the fact that Seoul makes it more of a public place that you can go.

I can tell you, I myself have gone to Seoul and I got something from the deli across the street, Prada ISO, my son's gotten sushi, my daughter got a slice of pizza from Pleasantville, and my wife got something from Lulu's, and we all sat there.

My son's gotten sushi, my daughter got a slice of piece of pleasant mill, and my wife got something from Lulu's.

And we all sat there.

And we were able to enjoy dinner that way.

So in that aspect, it does bring something different where it allows a public setting to be there.

And I think that that's a difference in that if we were to say that's a space just for Seoul, that you can only go there to have beers at Seoul or something like that.

I think that's different.

I would not be in support of that because then it's just really is just it's benefiting the community in a way, but it's benefiting just one specific business.

This the difference benefits all the businesses right there, and it gives the community another place to be able to get together and use this more space to sit, it's just gather.

Um, the same thing I would say I would raise for Vela, it's a little different because Vella is an actual restaurant.

So Vella, I don't know if I would agree that if we're going to allow this to happen at Seoul, which I'm in support in that aspect because of the public studying act sitting area.

I would say the same would have to be for Bella, but the difference there is they're a restaurant.

So it's not the same dynamic as let's say I'm I'm going to eat dinner there and I'm sitting there with my family getting served, and then somebody who gets, let's say, a coffee, a Dunkin' Donuts is sitting right next to me having a Dunkin' Donuts.

I don't know if that's what Vella really wants.

And but if we were going to do this, I would have to say would be fair on both ends and be the same kind of um arrangement that we do with both.

That's essentially where I've gotten from just talking to people and just reviewing things on my own.

And that's how I would I would start the conversation today.

Um yeah, and for me, it's it's a no-brainer.