BARI – Caught occupying spaces more than double those authorized with tables and chairs as if to obstruct the free passage of pedestrians. In three cases the sanction and subsequent temporary closure of the business were triggered.
The hunt for the “wild table” continues in Bari, furnishings for serving outside premises positioned beyond the permitted limits and which now invade squares, pavements and alleys. This time the local police, thanks to random checks, found three restaurant businesses located in old Bari which had, so to speak, “spread” onto the sidewalks, taking up more public space. A fine of 172 euros was first imposed on the three activities in question with the simultaneous warning to restore the state of the places within five days. But after this deadline the officers of the Rural Police unit, led by director Michele Cassano, returned and discovered that the irregularity had not been remedied. And so the orders were issued for the temporary closure of restaurant activities for a maximum of five days.
In a fourth case, however, the agents discovered a bar, again in the historic center area, without a Scia for the administration of food and drinks. In practice abusive. The owner, however, was the owner of Scia for the business in the neighborhood at another address in the city. The same business also lacked toilet facilities and so the harshest measure was taken, the order of immediate cessation, with a ban on continuation, of any illegally carried out food and drink supply activity.
The case of the coffee table, like the case of the gazebos, is one of the cases that has taken center stage in the city for years, exacerbated by the post-Covid restart, when the bureaucratic links were widened to allow businesses to gain more space outside and therefore more covered to accommodate the greatest number of customers. An expansion of the occupation of public land which, however, has at the same time also created some problems with the nightlife streets which have become perennial open-air diners and bars, becoming elements of obstacle to the passage of pedestrians and residents.
And it doesn’t happen only in old Bari but also in other neighborhoods with a high level of nightlife such as Umbertino and Poggiofranco, to which in the summer season seaside areas such as Torre a mare, Palese and Santo Spirito are added. To find a point of mediation for everyone’s needs, the Municipality has granted authorizations for parklets, platforms positioned on car parking stalls to allow activities to work better outdoors, thus freeing up sidewalks and common spaces for free passage . Parklet, where you can place tables and chairs, which allow bars and restaurants without adequate internal spaces and adjacent external spaces close to the business, to be able to work and serve food and drinks outside. Parklets which at the same time have created the discontent of motorists due to the reduction of parking spaces, especially in various areas of the Murat quadrilateral. At the beginning of the year the municipal council of Dedaro decided to authorize them until December 31st with simplified procedures and the payment of the fee for the occupation of public land. «The logic underlying the provision – the reasoning made by the municipal administration – is to expand the space that can be used for the installation of outdoor chairs and tables for the purposes of serving food and drinks, further encouraging the resumption of economic activities and promoting the liveability of neighborhoods.”
