THESE TAX AND PERMIT ADDICTS PUT ANOTHER STAKE IN THE HEART OF SMALL RESTAURANT OWNERS. IT ALL ADDS UP, THESE FEES. MY SON OWNS A SMALL RESTAURANT IN STUMPTOWN, THE PERMITS AND FEES ARE ENDLESS. THANKS CITY HALL.
Portland sidewalk cafes subject to stricter rules, higher fees
10:34 AM PDT on Thursday, June 4, 2009
File Photo New rules require sidewalk cafes be at least 5.5 feet from a curb. PORTLAND, Ore. -- Portland City Council has voted to enforce stricter rules on sidewalk cafes and increase their permitting fees. City leaders say some sidewalk cafes are encroaching too far into the right-of-way for disabled pedestrians, who struggle to get past the tables and servers at downtown street cafes. The council on Wednesday voted unanimously in favor of new rules that require between 5 and a half feet and 8 feet of space between curbs and cafes, depending on the size of the sidewalk. For example, a small, thin sidewalk on Mississippi Street in North Portland will require a 5 and a half foot buffer zone. But a wide downtown sidewalk will require at least 8 feet of buffer for foot traffic. Some restaurant owners threatened to layoff staff due to the new rules. John Connell-Maribona, owner of Pambiche, said the lost seating capacity will cost jobs. “You know, that's our staff that we want to keep employed, that want to stay employed,” he said. City Council will also increase sidewalk café permit fees to raise money to enforce the new rules -- but noted that fees have not been raised since the 1980s. Sidewalk permits did cost $10. The fee will now range between $90 and $220, depending on the size of the business. 
ANOTHER REASON TO RECALL THE MAYOR.
Posted by: Jack Peek | June 04, 2009 at 11:36 AM
they should raise these fees even higher. i'm tired of these snob joints tying up my sidewalks and places where folks can't even walk any more.
Posted by: walk to freedom | June 04, 2009 at 11:41 AM
Mississippi is an AVENUE, not a STREET, as it runs north-and-south.
Posted by: Don from Salem | June 04, 2009 at 02:10 PM
walk to slavery..uhh..freedom: Try running a small business that HIRES people in this communist town. It was hard to make a living when biz was good, now that the economy is becoming a mirror of 1932, its impossible. Every business is hurting, especially mom & pop restaurants. If Main St goes down, you can kiss your life & saftey goodbye. City Hall scum continues to invent more permits & paper work. They should relax all this for a year.
Posted by: Wally B | June 04, 2009 at 02:22 PM
"City Council will also increase sidewalk café permit fees to raise money to enforce the new rules" -- So they can take jobs away from the private sector and give them to government workers!
So Bush League
Posted by: brian | June 08, 2009 at 08:56 AM