Malliotakis to Mayor: Give restaurants a break

July 16, 2020 Jaime DeJesus

Photo courtesy of Ramon DeJesus

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A local elected official wants the city to clarify its guidelines for restaurants that provide outdoor dining.

“Someone got three fines in a week,” said Assemblymember Nicole Malliotakis. “It is abusive and they are going to go out of business if this doesn’t stop.”

Malliotakis wrote a letter to Mayor Bill de Blasio demanding an end to the confusion.

“These owners have suffered relentlessly throughout the COVID pandemic and they now feel that they are being harassed, as multiple inspectors from various agencies are coming to their establishments multiple times a week and sometimes on the same day,” she wrote. “They have been repeatedly visited by the New York City Department of Buildings, Department of Transportation, Department of Health, as well as the State Liquor Authority.

“Many owners who believe they are in compliance and have invested substantial income into transforming their restaurants are now finding out they are not in compliance and their investments seem pointless. The current guidelines are not clear on outdoor dining setups, the use of umbrellas, and a number of other stringent caveats. I would like you to review the existing regulations to allow more options, not fewer.”