By Jena Carr
Hospitality businesses across the Surf Coast can express interest in applying for a parklet, transforming kerbside parking into community spaces.
The outdoor dining area can now be installed across the shire, following Surf Coast Shire Council’s decision to adopt the outdoor dining parklet guidelines into Local Law during its July 23 meeting.
Councillor Adrian Schonfelder said parklets help foster accessible and inclusive communities by offering public seating and opportunities for street dining or green spaces.
“Our community has a large pet ownership and there are people like myself who like to dine out with our dogs,” he said.
“There’s a saying that every cloud has a silver lining, and with COVID, there were people who seemed to dine out more when we socially distanced.
“Parklets have now been adopted throughout Victoria, in particular in the City of Melbourne, and we’ve had trials of a parklet as well. It’s been very warmly received by the community.”
The new parklet guidelines followed a successful parklet pilot at Jan Juc’s The Beach Hotel, which received positive feedback, with 97 per cent of survey respondents in favour of the parklet.
Mayor Liz Pattison said it was great to see how the initiative progressed and encouraged anyone interested in applying for a parklet to submit an expression of interest.
“I loved the sense of community that the Jan Juc parklet created, and I look forward to seeing more pop up,” she said.
“Extended outdoor dining has the potential to increase the time spent in the area, subsequent spend, financial viability of the business, and encourage more slow tourism where visitors linger.”
Visit surfcoast.vic.gov.au/parkletpermit for more information or to express interest in applying for a parklet.
