The Parklet: Restaurant Deck Expansion Study

How might we support restaurant and small business owners with design and planning resources to re-open to customers while honoring safe distancing practices and adhering to city guidelines?

This is the question City Open Workshop aimed to address through its Restaurant Reopening Guide, which was created in partnership with the Illinois Restaurant Association.

As part of the Core Team of architects and designers offering consultations to restaurants in need of retrofitting their spaces in light of the State of Illinois Phase 1 through 5 plan of re-opening, Wyzendale developed a Parklet concept. This concept enables restaurant owners to use existing parking spaces to expand outdoor dining.

Wyzendale’s Parklet concept enables restaurant owners to find new ways to serve customers while keeping them at a safe distance from one another through the novel use of existing parking spaces.

A prefabricated wooden deck with metal planters and metal siding front panels enables 12 extra patrons to be seated per Parklet unit. This ensures the short term viability of the restaurant by maintaining their valuable customer base and brings a slower pace to the streetscape for dining. Parking Revenue can be offset bey use of the public way permitting or Parklet rental from a third party.

Download our full Parklet concept here.

To schedule a consultation with Wyzendale to discuss safe re-opening strategies and resources, email info@wyzendale.com. Pricing is also available upon request.