Gov. Phil Murphy
has signed a bill extending outdoor dining standards set forth in response to
the COVID-19 public health emergency.
Restaurants, bars, breweries and distilleries were given permission by the state to
use tents, canopies and tables outside during the beginning of the pandemic --
superseding local ordinance.
That law will be
extended to Nov. 30, 2024, with the bill signing after it was set to expire
this November. It will allow the businesses to continue to use the tents,
canopies and tables outside of their business establishment from the
first day of April to the first day of December.
"Believe it
or not, we still have some customers who are uncomfortable with dining inside.
So, they will come here, and they know they can eat outside,” says Andrew
Murray, manager of Suprema.
Still, some business owners say outside dining cuts down on
valuable parking spots. They say sometimes the customers choose to
just move on ultimately hurting their business - and that privilege
for some is a detriment to others.