The Village of Somerset, Ohio has partnered with Sixmo to conduct and produce an Outdoor Dining Feasibility Study. The purpose of this study was to study the possibility of granting expansion of businesses and restaurants onto the public right-of-way.
The COVID-19 Pandamic saw communities throughout the United States creating legislation or temporarily lifting existing legislation to allow private access to the public right-of-way as regulations created a barrier for businesses to provide goods or services. Several States and local communities throughout the United States lifted regulations so restaurants could act fast.
One of the most impacted industries was the food industry. In an effort to keep citizens separated, restaurants were requesting access to serve their patrons outside. The Village of Somerset did allow for restaurants to access the public right-of-way but without enacted legislation, the Village was vulnerable to liability concerns.
Sixmo conducted this study to ensure that the Village could maintain an outdoor dining program based on State and Federal regulations prior to COVID-19, and provided them with legislation documentation and design guidelines needed to start and run the program.