Unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures, and the COVID pandemic era certainly qualifies—medically, recreationally, educationally, and of course economically. Business survival demands resourcefulness, creativity, and perseverance, and our local restaurants and taverns have been especially creative in ramping up takeout and delivery services and doing what they can to accommodate patrons in outdoor areas. Amalfi’s, for instance, converted a large section of its spacious parking lot to outdoor seating beneath a gigantic wooden canopy. But with few parking lots of size on Fremont Street, it has been difficult for smaller businesses within the Beaumont Business Association (BBA) business district to provide adequate safe-distancing outdoor seating facilities for their patrons. One such business, long-standing neighborhood tavern McPeet’s Portland Pub, had been in dire straits until the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) came to the rescue with its “Healthy Businesses Program”—a city initiative for implementing three different types of outdoor plazas: parking plazas, side street plazas, and main street plazas. Last July McPeet’s (in concert with Grand Central Bakery across the street) applied for and received a “side street plaza” permit for construction of a handsome fenced-off courtyard adjacent to the pub, with tables socially distanced. But covering almost the entire width of 45th Avenue, it blocks traffic onto Fremont Street.
The good news: McPeet’s owner Chris Petersen was eventually able to hire back seven employees and rejuvenate the business; moreover, PBOT ended up issuing over 600 summer plaza permits to needy businesses throughout the city. The bad news: residents living on 45th Avenue in the vicinity of McPeet’s registered complaints with PBOT, BBA, and BWNA contending that notification about McPeet’s plaza project was late in arriving, short on specifics, and afforded homeowners no opportunity to weigh in on the project prior to implementation. Moreover, street blockage had forced hefty-sized vehicles like garbage trucks and emergency vehicles into residential driveways to negotiate turnabouts. The complainants also railed against inconsiderate behavior by outdoor patrons at McPeet’s, especially at night, including laxness in COVID safety, loudness, and intrusions onto private property.
Complaints about notification and street blockage were addressed by PBOT and patron misbehavior complaints addressed by BWNA (via BBA): a PBOT spokesperson responded with an email to complainants stressing the benefits of the plaza program for struggling businesses and promising residents that their suggestions would be taken into consideration by PBOT in planning for 2021. BWNA entered into a Good Neighbor Agreement (GNA) with McPeet’s in which Chris Petersen promises to monitor coronavirus safety compliance, remind patrons to be considerate of nearby residents in their behavior, and alert patrons to the legally required 10:00 p.m. business closing time by requesting they vacate pub premises. While the agreement is not legally binding, Mr. Petersen has been fully cooperative, and a win-win-win for McPeet’s, its patrons, and residents is the hopeful outcome.