Inner city hospitality venues urged to apply for grants up to $10,000 to expand outdoor dining
Inner city cafes and restaurants can now apply for grants up to $10,000 to expand outdoor dining onto footpaths and even streets. But a key hospitality figure is not impressed.
Victoria
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Inner city hospitality venues can start applying for grants up to $10,000 to expand outdoor dining when restrictions ease further.
Eligible venues will get free temporary permits with the right to trade onto footpaths, taking over on-street carparking spaces and joining with neighbouring businesses to use adjacent laneways.
The measure, revealed exclusively by the Herald Sun last month, identifies six key dining precincts:
Bourke St East; Russell St; Lygon St, Carlton; Errol St, North Melbourne; Domain Rd, South Yarra; and Bellair St Kensington.
The program is funded from the $100 million Melbourne City Recovery Fund sponsored by the City of Melbourne and Andrews Government.
City council CEO Justin Hanney said it was important that the outdoor dining spaces were high quality and inviting.
“To achieve this, we will support businesses to install bollards, planters and barriers,” he said. “Businesses will be responsible for furniture such as chairs and tables, and fast grants are available to assist cash-strapped traders.”
“We expect outdoor dining to be so popular with patrons this summer that it will become a permanent feature of our city for generations to come.”
Industry Support and Recovery Minister Martin Pakula said the support was a vital part of the government’s recovery plan for Melbourne and Victoria.
“Cash to back business initiatives and a can-do attitude from the council will help to bring people back into the heart of the city,” he said.
But restaurant king Chris Lucas, who is leading an industry push to get eateries fully opened earlier, rejected the outdoor dining plan.
“We are focused on the main game, being indoor dining,” he said.
“We have zero interest in pursuing anything else and being distracted by simplistic ideas such as outdoor dining when it’s cold outside.”
Mr Lucas, who also sits on a special business advisory body for Lord Mayor Sally Capp, said the industry had provided a world-class covid-operating plan for indoor dining that was the safest in Australia.
“We expect the government to listen, and allow us to re-employ another 400,000 young Victorians,” he said.
“This will only happen with a sensible indoor dining plan.”
The outdoor dining grant applications are open now and recipients will be announced on October 23 and November 6.
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