Chicago Alfresco program to help businesses expand outdoor dining, create public spaces

Community organizations and business associations can apply for grant funding through Choose Chicago to help neighborhood restaurants and businesses create unique outdoor spaces.

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Mayor Lori Lightfoot and her wife Amy Eshleman eat outside at a table covered in a red, plaid table cloth to promote the city’s new program “Chicago Alfresco.”

Mayor Lori Lightfoot and her wife Amy Eshleman eat outside to promote the city’s new program Chicago Alfresco, which aims to expand neighborhoods’ outdoor dining spaces.

Heidi Zeiger, City of Chicago

Community organizations and business associations can now apply via the Chicago Department of Transportation for funding to design and build long-term outdoor spaces for dining and public enjoyment.

The Chicago Alfresco program, announced Friday by Mayor Lori Lightfoot along with CDOT and Choose Chicago, is meant to encourage neighborhood businesses to open up streets and sidewalks and create places to support community identity and safe interaction among residents.

CDOT spokesman Michael Claffey said the initiative is an opportunity to take what worked from Chicago’s Expanded Outdoor Dining Permit, which was released in April 2020, and bring it to the next level by incorporating an aesthetic space for arts, culture and activities like walking and biking. On March 26, CDOT will host a webinar to answer community members’ questions about the program.

“The idea is to improve people’s sense of community and also to help spur the dining industry and other retail opportunities that are out there,” Claffey said.

Chambers of commerce, Special Service Area providers, and other not-for-profit organizations that work with businesses and restaurants can submit proposals for projects that will transform curbs, streets, alleys and existing plazas.

All proposals will be reviewed by the city and must meet the city’s evaluation criteria, follow all social distancing guidelines, and include the proper permits and licensing to operate outdoors.

The first round of proposals are due by 5 p.m. April 15, and the city will approve plans by April 30 so construction and installation can begin in June.

Sam Toia, president and CEO of the Illinois Restaurant Association said in an email statement to the Sun-Times the program “is a creative, positive effort” to increase business opportunities and community across Chicago.

“We are highly supportive of its mission and will use our platforms to encourage as many applicants as possible,” Toia said.

Tonya Trice, executive director of the South Shore Chamber of Commerce, said she is excited about the Chicago Alfresco program coming to her area, as business owners that do not normally receive mainstream promotion stand to benefit from it.

“We have some wonderful restaurants that would be highlighted,” Trice said. “This program would help attract new clients for these restaurants and give them an opportunity to rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic and the civil unrest from last summer.”

Trice said the South Shore Chamber of Commerce “definitely plans” to submit a project proposal for the program.

Robert Fojtik, senior director of neighborhood strategies at Choose Chicago, said organizations in need of financial assistance can apply for a grant to implement a Chicago Alfresco project.

With financial support from Diageo North America, a global leader in alcoholic beverages, Fojtik said there is $2.5 million in total available for businesses and 75% of the funds will be distributed to South and West side communities.

Not all organizations are on board with the new initiative, however. Arturo Carrillo, director for health and violence prevention at Brighton Park Neighborhood Council, said the council is not planning on applying to Chicago Alfresco because the neighborhood’s COVID-19 positivity rate is already increasing as restaurant capacity expands and the weather allows for more outdoor dining.

“This is an issue of equity,” Carrillo said. “It is important for people to go back to normal, but … we want to see the mayor prioritize community areas that have a disproportionate number of restaurant workers, like Brighton Park, to get vaccinated.”

Individual organizations can be awarded up to $250,000 grant funding, although Fojtik said most projects will likely cost between $80,000 and $100,000, depending on their size.

Fojtik said projects eligible for the grant will demonstrate how placemaking can be a tool to incorporate community and plan for the longterm use of the space.

“We’re not looking to do a weekend, we’re not looking to do a month, we’re really looking to engage and activate the public for a longer period of time,” Fojtik said.

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