Hospitality businesses will be able to apply for grants of $5,000 to set up outdoor dining spaces and planning rules will be further eased to make it easier for businesses to get permission.
The NSW Government is also offering local councils funding to promote outdoor events and revive street spaces.
The trial easing of planning rules which allowed all pubs and small bars to apply to use the footpath and public spaces to serve diners alfresco under exempt development rules has now been made permanent. The changes, trialled from October 2020, aligned pubs and small bars with the existing planning rules for cafes and restaurants.
The rules for alfresco dining on public and private land are also being temporarily changed to include parks, registered clubs and open spaces. Hospitality providers will be able to apply to set up alfresco dining as an exempt development with landowner’s consent. These temporary measures will run for seven months from now until 18 April 2022.
Up to 5,000 hospitality businesses can also apply to the Government for a $5,000 grant to get their outdoor dining venture off the ground.
Alfresco Restart Package
Our communities are ready to make up for lost time post-lockdown. The Alfresco Restart Package will bring the streets of NSW back to life thanks to a raft of initiatives and $66 million in funding that will see outdoor dining, live music and entertainment return. As the state reopens, we are supporting people to reconnect with family and friends over a meal or entertainment in COVID-Safe outdoor spaces.
The programs will provide more, better and activated public spaces to support community wellbeing and economic recovery. The Alfresco Restart initiatives being rolled out from November include:
- The Festival of Place where local streets will be revitalised with murals, art installations, laneway cinemas and more to kickstart a 24-hour economy. The Festival includes:
- Changing the outdoor dining planning rules permanently to allow pubs and small bars to implement outdoor dining more easily
- Setting up emergency temporary alfresco dining measures for businesses to setup dining in parks and public spaces
- Offering $5,000 grants for hospitality businesses to get their outdoor dining ventures in a park or public space off the ground.
This package is part of the NSW Government’s efforts to support help businesses and communities recover from the pandemic, as vaccination rates increase. These programs support delivery of the Premier’s Priority to increase the proportion of homes in urban areas within a 10-minute walk of quality green, open and public space by 10 per cent by 2023.
