The NYC Hospitality Alliance Executive Director, Andrew Rigie, joined Mayor Mamdani, Council Member Lincoln Restler, restaurant owners, and small business advocates as the Mayor signed legislation allowing year-round roadway dining in New York City.
This reform addresses one of the most significant burdens in the current outdoor dining program by eliminating the costly cycle of building roadway cafés, dismantling them for the winter, storing materials, and rebuilding them again in the spring. Allowing roadway cafés to be winterized and operate year-round will make participation more practical and sustainable for restaurants and bars across the five boroughs.
We thank Mayor Mamdani for signing the bill into law and Speaker Julie Menin and Council Member Restler for their continued advocacy to advance this important reform.
The two additional outdoor dining bills that will become law 30 days following Council passage:
Introduction 0894-2026, sponsored by Council Member Gale Brewer, will allow licensed sidewalk cafés to use seasonal enclosures from November 30 through March 31, with design and operating requirements to be established through rulemaking.
Introduction 0918-2026, sponsored by Council Member Shanel Thomas-Henry, will let sidewalk and roadway café operators pay annual revocable-consent fees in quarterly installments instead of one lump sum, reducing upfront financial pressure on small businesses.
Together, the bills would make the outdoor dining program more flexible and financially manageable for restaurants and bars. Read our alert from when these bills passed Council.
The Alliance is continuing to monitor action on the other outdoor dining bills passed by the City Council and will remain actively engaged as the Department of Transportation develops rules and implementation guidance. The goal is for the rules to be finalized before the end of the year, and we are urging the City to establish a timeline that allows restaurants and bars to benefit from the new program before the winter season ends. We will keep members informed as additional legislation is signed and new requirements, eligibility standards, and timelines become available.
