Madison mayor Paul Soglin is concerned about a proliferation of bars, cafes, and restaurants and loss of retail downtown. He’s proposed a plan to even the playing field by moving to a fee system based on square footage rather than the amount of outdoor seating, which would raise the fee for an average 250-square-foot sidewalk cafe from $750 to $3,250 by 2018.
That has the owners of bars, restaurants, and coffee shops around the Capitol Square and State Street fired up, although the mayor says he’s willing to negotiate the size of a potential increase.
Under the mayor’s proposal, fees would change from the current system to $5 per square foot in 2016 and 2017, and jump to $13 per square foot in 2018. The fee for sidewalk cafes outside Capitol Square and State Street would be $3 per square foot.
The proposal would result in some major spikes for downtown restaurants with larger outdoor seating areas. According to the Wisconsin State Journal, fees would rise from $750 annually to $8,300 for Colectivo Coffee, 25 S. Pinckney St.; $8,763 for Ian’s Pizza, 102 State St.; and $14,144 for Rare Steak House, 14 W. Mifflin St., in 2018.
The fees for a 250-square-foot outdoor cafe would be at least four times those in Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, and New Orleans, but less than those in Miami Beach, San Diego, and New York City.
