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St. Charles extends outdoor dining program through winter

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Published  September 14, 2021 4:48pm CDT
Small Business
FOX 32 Chicago

Chicago suburb looking to extend outdoor dining through winter

The igloos are coming back at the First Street Plaza in downtown St. Charles.

ST. CHARLES, Ill. - The igloos are coming back to the First Street Plaza in downtown St. Charles.

First Street used to be a street but now, the city is planning to transform it into a permanent pedestrian corridor.

The issue - will restaurants in the area be able to continue to use the public space this winter for outdoor dining?

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Many restaurants credit outside dining options over the past year as the only way they survived the coronavirus pandemic in the winter months.

A St. Charles planning committee voted unanimously Monday night to allow restaurants like Alter Brewing to continue using the space through April 2022.

"It was not just really, really cool and an amenity to the community but a revenue stream that really, really helped us out during the tough time," said Ken Henricks of Alter Brewing. "So, yeah, with the Delta variant looming large for this winter, that's a nice fallback position to be able to utilize that space."

The issue will now go to the full city council later this month where it is expected to pass.