The Albany Common Council has passed legislation making outdoor dining permanent in the city.
Albany's outdoor dining scene is officially here to stay. Introduced in 2020 at the outset of the pandemic to help struggling bars and restaurants, Albany's Extended Patio & Outdoor Café program proved to be a popular notion that continued in 2021.
This week, common councilors led by bill sponsor Owusu Anane made it permanent.
"Why do we have to go back to the way things where when out of a crisis we create a new way for people to support local restaurants and people still like this way of doing things," said Anane.
The vote was unanimous.