Pronto Creative Foods, Palm Beach in street fight with council over footpath tables, chairs
A bureaucratic street fight has erupted in an exclusive Sydney suburb over a cafe’s right to put tables and chairs on the footpath.
Manly
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A bureaucratic blue has broken out at Palm Beach over four tables, and their chairs, set up outside one of the suburb’s most popular cafes.
The owner of Pronto Creative Foods, Stacey Driver, has been ordered by Northern Beaches Council to immediately remove the outdoor seating next to the kerb along Barrenjoey Rd.
She said a council official told her three weeks ago that “someone might fall into the road” and that the seating was blocking pedestrians using the footpath.
Ms Driver, who has owned the business for 37 years, was also informed that she doesn’t have permission for the kerbside seating, based on a 2007 outdoor table plan that only allows tables close to the front of the cafe — away from the kerb.
But the cafe owner argued that “times have moved on in 16 years” and the facade of the cafe had changed, leaving less room for tables. She is paying $3700 a year to the council to have outdoor seating.
Council officers went to the cafe after a complaint about the seating and told Ms Driver that a new permit for outdoor dining would be required because the previous approval had expired.
Under the council’s “Outdoor Dining Guidelines” kerbside dining is not deemed to be safe and prohibited on arterial roads.
Pronto was given outdoor dining approval for four tables in April 2009. Since then it installed a servery window in the shopfront and moved outdoor dining furniture to the kerbside, creating a passageway so that customers could be served from the window.
Council advised Pronto in July 2020 that it would be required to reapply for its outdoor dining permit and that the current seating configuration would not be approved as it did not meet the guidelines. No compliance action was taken, and outdoor dining was allowed to continue under the ciuncils support for businesses during Covid.
“I just want my customers to enjoy the sunshine outside, especially in the mornings,” Ms Driver said
A petition started by Ms Driver to allow for the extra kerbside tables, has been signed by about 250 customers — many of them loyal regulars for decades.
“The council told me it wasn’t their jurisdiction, that it was a decision for ‘roads and traffic’.
“So I’m in the dark about what I should do.
“There are plenty of other cafes in the area, like in Newport and Avalon, who have kerbside tables along much busier roads than this, and with higher speed limits.”
Ms Driver said providing outdoor options on footpaths for cafes had been a common practice in the area “for many years”.
“I thought the council wanted to see a vibrant and welcoming atmosphere from small businesses for locals and visitors, after the Covid lockdowns,” she said.
“They aren’t exactly helping.”
Customers at the cafe on Monday, including Peter Rattray, and his wife Christine, who have been driving from Newport to Pronto most days for the past nine years for their morning coffees, backed Ms Driver’s battle with the council.
“This is a very friendly place, the best coffee on the northern beaches,” Mr Rattray said. “Stacey is such a hard worker. She’s in here at 5am, and doesn’t deserve all this fuss.”
Mrs Rattray agreed that the tables were needed.
“This a place where people come to meet their friends and neighbours, It’s a sort of community hub. And there's plenty of room between the tables for people to walk through.”
Corrie Sullivan said the council should back off.
“They should be concentrating on more important issues, like the sizes of houses they allow to be built around here.”
The council’s Interim CEO Louise Kerr said it was working with Ms Driver to find an alternative seating solution that is safe and allows for adequate clearance for a pedestrian thoroughfare and adheres to our guidelines.
“Our economy is vital to the fabric of the Northern Beaches, providing employment, social connectivity and investment,” Ms Kerr said.
Council is committed to helping businesses while ensuring the safety of our community is paramount.
“We also provide guidance to ensure our local business community feels supported, they are well informed and knows where and how to access advice, financial support and practical resources.”
The council haas provided $3.7 million in support to local businesses since the Covid pandemic emerged
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