Temporary outdoor dining on public land

Applications for temporary car park dining or establishing outdoor dining in an adjacent laneway are now closed.

Current permit holders will have their permits extended until 30^th June 2022.

Any businesses wanting to extend their outdoor dining to a footpath will be required to apply for the Footpath Trading Permit. 

The Temporary Car Park  Dining permit will be issued to applicants FREE of charge.

There may be fees for other approvals from external organisations (eg. Victorian Commission for Gaming and Liquor Regulations, Department of Transport) but this is yet to be confirmed.

Most current permits will be extended to 30^th June 2022.

The Temporary Car Park Dining Permit allows businesses who wish to extend their outdoor dining area to enable table service in car parks or laneways adjacent to their business. The following options are available depending on each location:

• Occupying on-street car parking space immediately in front of the business;
• Partnering with neighbouring businesses to occupy sections of on-street car parking or localised street space; or
• Partnering with neighbouring businesses to expand outdoor dining to adjacent laneways.

If you already have a Footpath Trading Permit then you can continue to use that to operate in the area previously approved. You will need to apply for the Temporary Outdoor Dining permit if you would like to expand your outdoor dining area further than your current Footpath Trading Permit allows.

The Footpath Trading Permit is a renewable ongoing permit available for businesses intending to use Council footpaths for trade; including signage, displays or outdoor dining.

The Temporary Car Park permit is a temporary permit in response to the State of Emergency, which allows businesses to extend outdoor dining to Council owned car parks and laneways adjacent to their business.

Where a business is unable to offer table service to footpaths, car spaces or road spaces within a reasonable distance, Council will explore opportunities for safe communal outdoor dining areas within each centre.

In this instance businesses would need to offer take-away dining options that can be consumed at these designated communal areas. More information will be released shortly.

These communal spaces will be alcohol and smoke free zones.

Businesses proposing to do their outdoor dining on private land will not need a Temporary Car Park Dining Permit, but they may have some planning considerations which can be quickly responded to by Council's planning team. 

Changes to the Victorian Planning Scheme were announced on 21 October 2020, to help streamline the process for councils to assess applications for planning permits for outdoor dining.

Pubs, restaurants, cafes and other food and drink venues may now be exempt from planning permit requirements to use outdoor spaces on their own land, adjoining land, or nearby parks and public land to serve patrons if certain conditions are met. 

Businesses wishing to sell or serve alcohol in these extended outdoor dining areas on private land can apply direct to the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation.  No council consent is required in this situation.

We expect that all businesses will benefit from extended outdoor dining attracting patrons back into our activity centres.  Council is ensuring that parking will still be available and active modes of transport will be promoted.

Yes, toilets can be used by patrons of the outdoor dining areas. The density quotient does not apply to toilets and where used as a thoroughfare to outdoor space (e.g. foyer, reception area). Appropriate cleaning and disinfecting practices must be implemented in these areas.

As per previous dining requirements, food must be served if alcohol is provided. 

If you would like to extend your liquor licence to your temporary outdoor area, you can apply for a temporary limited licence from the Victorian Commission for Gambling and Liquor Regulation (VCGLR).

If your business is on private land, you will need to obtain the landowner's consent and apply directly to extend your liquor licence through the VCGLR.

If you business is on public land, Council will provide you with a letter of support with your permit and you will then need to apply to extend your liquor licence through the VCGLR. The consent on public land will be included in the business' permit, and no separate permission is required to be lodged with council. Once the letter of consent is issued, the consent along with the approved outdoor dining area is required to be submitted with the VCGLR application by the business.

For the most up to date information on what is required, visit the VCGLR website.

If your restaurant or cafe does not currently have a liquor licence, you must apply for a new licence on the VCGLR website.

Communal eating areas where people can eat take-away food from local businesses will be considered alcohol and smoke free zones.

Yes, review your current Public Liability Insurance and you ensure your Limit of Liability is for a minimum of $10 million and the policy includes outdoor dining. Also check with your insurer that your insurance will cover any area you are wanting to expand your outdoor dining space onto.

Yes, you can use the footpath area in front of one neighbouring business provided:

• You have written permission from your neighbouring business to do so.
• You have taken into consideration a 1.8m gap from the front of the neighbouring business to the dining area to allow for a walkway, and if the car space in front of that business is remaining a car space, there is 600mm setback from the kerb to allow car doors to open.
• You are only using the footpath of one neighbouring business.

View footpath outdoor dining zone example.

New applications for car park or laneway extended outdoor dining spaces have now closed.

The following information demonstrates the guidelines used to assess the current temporary car park dining permit holders.

As a guide, the following allowance for car spaces per business is as follows:

• Parallel car space: one space per business
• 45, 60 or 90 degree car space: up to three spaces per business
• No more than three spaces will be approved per business

If the car space(s) you want to use is on a Council road, Council will process your application within 5 business days. If the car space(s) you want to use is on a VicRoads road, this may take up to 10 business days as VicRoads require a safety audit and assessment. Council will undertake this and attempt to speed this process up as much as possible.

While we will do our best to make each proposal work, if the specific location cannot be sufficiently made safe then the car space option may not be able to proceed. 

The following cannot be occupied for outdoor dining:

• Disabled parking bays and associated circulation
• Loading zones
• No Parking zones
• No Standing zones
• Bus bays

The following will need to be considered when setting up your extended outdoor dining space:

• Businesses can set up their table and chairs as they wish, ensuring it complies with their COVID Safe Plan and State Government requirements. 
• Outdoor weighted umbrellas are preferred to help cover customers from different weather conditions.
  • Marquees and other similar structures are a safety concern and therefore discouraged. If you would like to set up a marquee (with no walls) it must be set back from the road and a building permit will be required. Marquees will not be directly approved through this permit. You will need to apply for Council consent with the building department, view more information on our website.
• Council will provide concrete or water filled barriers and parawebbing for safety. Businesses are able to replace the parawebbing with their own screen provided they meet the following requirements
  • It is continuous and uninterrupted, with a maximum total height of 900mm, and a child cannot move through it and an adult cannot climb over it.
  • The screening must be permanently installed for the duration of the permit (not packed up each night).
  • View examples of innovative screens.

You can check on the VicRoads website or on Council's road register lookup tool to identify if a road is owned by Council or VicRoads.

Alternatively, you can check a Melways map. A red or black road indicates it is owned by VicRoads.

Any table service areas must be within a close proximity of the business. Requests to use public space for this purpose will be considered by Council based on access, safety and amenity.

Council will be identifying opportunities in each centre that might be appropriate for a communal outdoor dining area, however this is reliant on State Government clarity. These would enable the community to consume take-away food from local businesses in an outdoor dining environment. Requests for temporary road closures and occupying public land will need to be submitted.

It may be possible to do minor quick repairs depending on capacity and the nature of the issue, however existing pavements, roads and levels will remain unless they are a hazard. If you believe something needs to be fixed urgently by Council, please report an issue on our website.

All existing street furniture will remain in place, such as seats, bike hoops, drinking fountains and bins. Any plans for temporary outdoor dining will work around these where necessary.

No, the furnishing and operations of these spaces is the responsibility of individual businesses. The Victorian Government has established a new grant to assist businesses in their outdoor dining setup. Visit the Business Victoria website for more information.

On Sunday 18 October it was announced by Premier Daniel Andrews that hospitality businesses can prepare to open from 2 November 2020. More information is expected to be announced by the State Government on 1 November 2020. This date can be brought forward by the State Government and workers and staff can return to work premises from 28 October for essential preparations.

Specific information for Metropolitan Melbourne was announced by the State Government on 18 October 2020. From 1 November hospitality businesses can open with the following restrictions:

• seated dining only
• maximum of 10 people per group, seated 1.5m from other groups
• indoor space: open with a cap of 10 persons per indoor space, with a maximum of 20 patrons per venue indoors, subject to density requirements (1 person per 4sqm)
• outdoor space: open with a cap of 50 patrons per venue outdoors subject to density requirements (1 person per 2sqm)

Yes, toilets can be used by patrons of the outdoor dining areas. The density quotient does not apply to toilets and where used as a thoroughfare to outdoor space (e.g. foyer, reception area). Appropriate cleaning and disinfecting practices must be implemented in these areas.