Your guide to NYC's public proceedings.
Q&A
Challenges in the outdoor dining application process
0:45:09
·
85 sec
Panel members discuss various challenges restaurant owners face in the outdoor dining application process. Key issues highlighted include:
- Language barriers due to limited language options for the application
- Lack of in-person application submission and assistance options
- Technical issues with the online application, such as inability to save progress
- Difficulties for immigrant business owners who prefer physical locations for submitting applications and getting assistance
Andrew Rigie
0:45:09
Yeah.
0:45:10
We've we've heard about that.
0:45:11
We've heard about many problems with the application process, not only just language challenges and only having an online option, not having an actual window to go to and sitting down with a representative, But also another challenge about being able to save your application midway.
0:45:27
I'm not sure if DOT has changed the system yet, but a big problem was you couldn't save your application.
0:45:34
You know, so you basically go on, you get to one part.
0:45:37
Has this been Max, do know if this has changed yet?
0:45:39
Can you save?
0:45:41
So one of the challenges, you go, you get, you know, a quarter way, a half way through the process and all of a sudden you're told you need some other document that you don't have.
0:45:49
So all of sudden you stop the progress, you have to go find that document, you come back and you have to start the process all over again.
0:45:55
So you can imagine those frustrations for anyone, but then if there's a language barrier, it just compounds those challenges.
Max Bookman
0:46:04
If I could just add to that chair, a number of the businesses that I interface with are first generation, zero generation immigrants, and I just can't underscore enough the expectation that they have that there there ought to be a place, a physical place where they can go to get answers to questions, to hand in application materials.
0:46:24
It's not passe or out of style to say you know, that there should be a place where people could actually bring paper and submit something, and that's really been lost here.
Julie Menin
0:46:35
Absolutely.