Are we giving away these free to the restaurants or is the city charging commensurate downtown equivalent rent for the space, proportional to the sales/ profits these will generate which can often be 0.5-2X of the restaurant sales itself.

Although currently hit restaurant owners have benefitted significantly, it should not be a freebee in perpetuity and a giveaway windfall from us citizens, for the Richie rich owners/ operators of the downtown space.

I'm actually in full support of giving away the street space to the restaurants - maybe under the guidance they pay for some of the improvements required to make them "legal" and aesthetically consistent and congruent with the downtown plan.

But the one area Pleasanton has an opportunity to provide something unique and different than Livermore or Danville downtown environments is by creating more of an outdoor experience. I'd gladly give away the land and street parking to support something unique in our downtown experience.

And yes, it needs to include access for disabled residents as well as a parking solution for others so they can enjoy as well; but you start with "this is what we're going to do" and design solutions for the other items into the execution.

Go for it Pleasanton.

I should amend - especially if it can be dynamic so in winter or weekdays the spaces aren't needed they provide greater accessibility vs when summer months and weekends favor increased traffic and crowds.

The Downtown parking issue needs to be addressed before giving up space for parklets. If you work for a business downtown it's a nightmare finding parking for a full day of work. Our Company was looking to lease office space downtown, but with the shortage of parking we were forced to look elsewhere. In addition, downtown does not have enough retail businesses to compete with Danville or Livermore.

Is fold sold for consumption in parklets taxed with sales tax because it is not consumed on premise, or is city declaring parklets to be a structure not requiring sales tax?

I believe that the objective must be to preserve the vibrant downtown attractions and ensure that downtown restaurants and retail businesses can thrive there. That means we should not charge restaurants for the parklet spaces AND — very important — we must build a parking garage so both employees and customers can have reliable, convenient parking every day. It is not a "freebee" or "giveaway" as some have called it. Such a plan is in the best interests of the city and its residents. Let's be smart about it.

First in answer to VP most restaurants do not make 50% to 200% profits. The bottom line profit is perhaps 10-25%. Most of them are not rechie rich but Mom and Dad type of owners. Many of them have struggled to survive during the last year or so. I know as I have been in this industry for more than 20 years.
With these outdoor dining parklets I have noticed that there are more people coming to these restaurants and with outdoor music our downtown looks very vibrant. So I am all in support of this program but with proper rules and guidelines from the city.