Outdoor Dining On Nantucket Will Return With Some Limits - And Fees

Outdoor dining will return on Nantucket this summer, but not every restaurant will be allowed back onto the island’s streets and sidewalks. And those that are will have to pay for the privilege.

The Select Board on Wednesday endorsed a plan to bring back outdoor dining for the summer of 2022, but with new limitations - streets being off limits, for instance - and a tiered fee schedule for restaurants that choose to participate on public property.

The plan, put forward by the town’s licensing administrator Amy Baxter, was endorsed by the Select Board Wednesday night with only minor changes, including increasing the fees originally proposed by Baxter.

The endorsement came after Gov. Charlie Baker approved an extension of the state order that allows municipalities to permit outdoor food and alcohol service at licensed establishments through April 1, 2023.

Under Nantucket’s plan, the biggest change from the past two years is that outdoor dining will only be allowed on public sidewalks and private property, and it will not be permitted on public streets or parking spaces.

That means a number of restaurants that were previously able to utilize the small side streets of downtown Nantucket for outdoor dining - including Ventuno, the Gaslight, Nautilus, the Club Car, Proprietors and Company of the Cauldron - are out of luck in 2022.

For Ventuno co-owner Dre Solimeo, not being able to utilize Oak Street this year is a bummer, but also a blessing given the staffing challenges all restaurants are facing.

“A mix of both,” he said. “The staffing challenges were something I would never want to experience again, but having gone through it once we came out better and more prepared on the other side. I'm sad to see the piazza go, I think it added a certain energy and romance to Ventuno and the downtown as a whole. It also felt right to be serving outside during somewhat uncertain COVID times. We are, however, excited to get back to being Ventuno, as it was always intended to be once again.”

There is still something of a happy ending, Solimeo added, as the outdoor dining tables and benches that he and his team built during the pandemic will be donated to the Strong Wings Adventure School summer camp.

Other restaurants that can safely utilize town sidewalks within the ADA requirements - including those on Broad, South Water, and Main streets - will need to reapply to the town and pay a fee ranging from $500 up to $2,500. Restaurants only serving food and a small number of tables pay the lowest fees, while establishments with food and all-alcohol licenses will pay at the top end.

The Select Board unanimously agreed to raise those fees above what Baxter had suggested out of a sense of fairness to other establishments that will be unable to utilize public spaces in front of their establishments.

“We can link it to what the square footage is worth,” Select Board vice chair Dawn Hill-Holdgate said. “I’m thinking these could be double what you proposed and would still be reasonable and defensible to people who cannot have these spaces.”

Restaurants will have to submit their applications to use public spaces for outdoor dining by May 9, which will be following by a public hearing for review on May 18.

Restaurants that were previously using private property for outdoor dining - places like The Chicken Box - will continue to be able to utilize those spaces this summer, but they must apply for a permanent “Alteration of Premises” to continue using them for food and beverage service.