The Town of Kill Devil Hills will allow restaurants to operate food trucks in their parking lots immediately, and that additional outdoor dining will be allowed once eateries in North Carolina are allowed to seat patrons again.
But the measures are temporary, and will only be allowed as long as there are restrictions on indoor dining and limits on seating capacities of restaurants in North Carolina stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mayor Ben Sproul issued the emergency order on Tuesday, following discussions at the Board of Commissioners meeting the previous evening.
While some restaurants in Kill Devil Hills already have outdoor seating areas, those that don’t would have to seek zoning and other changes that can take months to be able to at least offer some type of seating that is expected to be part of Phase 2 of North Carolina’s reopening of the economy.
Under North Carolina’s state of emergency statutes, municipalities and counties have the ability to take temporary actions by proclamation such as.
“It’s one of those few things we can do as a town to really help in a tough situation and help with everybody’s ability to find a little bit of normalcy in this very challenging moment,” Sproul said.
Restaurants and other food service establishments that are seeking the temporary waivers must complete an application and submit it to the Kill Devil Hills Planning and Inspections Department.
Other towns on the Outer Banks, as well as Dare County, have been discussing similar actions after requests by the Outer Banks Restaurant Association and restaurant owners.
