Last call: Deadline looms for New York City restaurants looking to keep outdoor dining sheds

Restaurants have less than a week left to apply for permits to continue outdoor dining on New York City streets.

Dining sheds became a staple for New York City during the pandemic, and officials say the updated requirements will help make it a permanent fixture.

More than 1,000 restaurants have applied for the updated permit, but there are likely thousands more restaurants that could apply.

Restaurants that do not apply to continue under the new rules by Aug. 3 will have to take down their outdoor dining structures immediately.

They could also face fines starting at $500 as early as next week.

The city's permanent outdoor dining program calls for restaurants to meet requirements for a standard design. For example, structures on the sidewalk cannot be fully enclosed, so sheds are not allowed.

And regardless of what the outdoor dining structures look like, all have to be taken down by Nov. 30 and cannot return until March 31.

There are also new rules for sidewalk dining, which also must be applied for by the end of the week. Sidewalk dining can stay up year round.

According to the Department of Transportation there are 13,164 establishments currently participating in NYC Open Restaurants. That includes 6,483 in Manhattan, 3,234 in Brooklyn, 2,559 in Queens, 698 in The Bronx and 190 in Staten Island.

"Outdoor dining enriches our communities, and we're excited to make it a permanent feature of New York City streets. Our new outdoor dining program is the largest and best in America, and I encourage all interested restaurants to apply," said NYC DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez.

Restaurants that are approved must bring their sheds into compliance within 30 days or by Nov. 1 -- whichever comes first.

----------

* Get Eyewitness News Delivered

* More New York City news

* Send us a news tip

* Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts

* Follow us on YouTube

Submit a tip or story idea to Eyewitness News

Have a breaking news tip or an idea for a story we should cover? Send it to Eyewitness News using the form below. If attaching a video or photo, terms of use apply.