Your guide to NYC's public proceedings.
Q&A
Council Member Riley questions Le Dive's attorney about sidewalk cafe operations
0:47:54
ยท
3 min
Council Member Kevin Riley questions Max Bookman, an attorney representing Le Dive restaurant, about their sidewalk cafe operations. The discussion covers the restaurant's opening date, history of sidewalk cafe use at the location, and their application for an open roadway cafe. Bookman also explains the stipulations agreed upon with the community board and emphasizes the economic importance of the sidewalk cafe for employee jobs.
- Le Dive opened in May 2022 and has been operating a sidewalk cafe since then under the DOT open restaurants program.
- The restaurant has applied for an open roadway cafe with 12 tables and 24 seats.
- Le Dive agreed to community board stipulations, including closing outdoor seating by 10 PM instead of the legally allowed midnight.
Kevin Riley
0:47:54
Thank you, mister Bookman.
0:47:58
I have a few questions that I'm gonna turn over to council member Amarte.
0:48:02
I believe you answered a couple of these, but I just wanna ask them for the record.
0:48:06
How long have you been operating at this location?
Max Bookman
0:48:09
02/2021.
0:48:11
May of May of May of twenty one is when they opened.
Kevin Riley
0:48:13
May of twenty twenty one?
UNKNOWN
0:48:14
Yes, sir.
Kevin Riley
0:48:15
How long has this location had a sidewalk cafe?
Max Bookman
0:48:18
So they opened during COVID under the temporary DOT open restaurants program.
UNKNOWN
0:48:22
It's '22.
0:48:23
Twenty '2?
Max Bookman
0:48:24
Okay.
0:48:24
Pardon me.
0:48:24
Was '22 is the correct answer.
Kevin Riley
0:48:26
That's
Max Bookman
0:48:26
fine.
0:48:26
So they've been operating their sidewalk cafe since right about when they opened under the DOT open restaurants program.
0:48:33
We don't again, in the last week that we've been involved since we heard of the call up, we don't have perfect information concerning, the prior sidewalk cafes of at this location.
0:48:42
But just through conversations in the community as well as Google Street View, which has a time travel function.
Kevin Riley
0:48:48
So I was just looking at
Max Bookman
0:48:49
We could see that if you go all the way back to 02/2007, which is when Google started doing this, there was a restaurant called Les Alphants Telibes that had a, sidewalk cafe there.
0:48:58
And if you go forward, you could see at various other times there were as well.
Kevin Riley
0:49:02
Have you also applied for an open roadway cafe for your establishment?
Max Bookman
0:49:06
Yes, sir.
Kevin Riley
0:49:07
For how many tables and seats?
Max Bookman
0:49:14
The Roadway Cafe is for one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 10, 11, 12 tables with 24 seats.
Kevin Riley
0:49:22
Okay.
0:49:23
Can you please discuss how the community board responded to your application and what modifications were you responding to how they respond to your application?
0:49:31
But can you, for the record, can you state what modifications the community board presented?
Max Bookman
0:49:36
Sure.
0:49:37
So we were presented with, a stipulation from Manhattan Community Board three.
0:49:41
They asked us to make, to agree to things that are more limiting than what the, program laws, and and regulations allow.
0:49:50
For example, the community board wanted us to close all outdoor seating by 10PM.
0:49:55
The law allows for midnight.
0:49:56
We agreed to 10PM.
0:49:59
We they asked for a phone number for Craig that could be conspicuously posted at all times so that if anybody from the community had concerns, they would be able to directly contact him.
0:50:10
That is enshrined in the stipulation.
0:50:12
We have a copy of the stipulation form here.
0:50:14
And just on that point, I just would like just to say, because I know council member Marte raised it, you know, you know, it was important for us to make an agreement with the community board because, a, we know how important the community engagement is, but but also, you know, we knew that not having a sidewalk cafe actually would have a significant amount of consequence for the business.
0:50:33
We've done calculations here, and three to four employees are employed through the Sidewalk Cafe alone.
0:50:41
Three to four employees are subject to losing their jobs without the Sidewalk Cafe.
0:50:46
So it's not completely, a sort of academic exercise.
0:50:50
There are real economic consequences for not having the sidewalk cafe, and that's why we've taken this process seriously.
0:50:57
That's why we've, we've made the agreements with the community board that we have.
0:51:00
And we're happy to agree to to to more, restrictions.
0:51:03
Again, we're just here to he to to listen and to hear what those issues are so that we can craft a stipulation if possible.
Kevin Riley
0:51:09
Thank you.
0:51:09
Councilman Amate.