Pedlets and Parklets: Making Possible a New, and Really Cool, Approach to Outdoor Dining

I love outdoor dining — and its potential for South Milwaukee.

Thankfully, we already have a few pretty cool options in town. I’m partial to Taco Stop and Azteca Restaurant, and what can beat Ferch’s burgers, custard and beer at Grant Park Beach?

I’m hoping that’s just the start, and that a couple new ordinances will lead to more outdoor dining opportunities in South Milwaukee.

Last month, the South Milwaukee Common Council passed an ordinance authorizing and regulating the use of pedlets and parklets.

Learn more on the city website. From it …

• A pedlet is a structure that acts as a sidewalk extension beyond the curb line.  It is utilized to allow for a business to use the existing sidewalk as an extension of the business, and the pedlet acts as a new route for pedestrians.
• A parklet is a platform which is located in the parking lane of the street, is at the same level as the sidewalk, and is intended to provide additional space and amenities for the adjacent business establishment and its patrons.

You’ve probably seen a parklet before, and, if done well, they are terrific. Below is one at Shaker’s Cigar Bar in Walker’s Point, which I visited on Friday. And the above pictures are from West Allis, which has been at the forefront of instituting pedlets.

Beautiful. Let’s bring this to South Milwaukee!