Unless you're a curmudgeon who adamantly wants to retain as many parking spaces as possible, outdoor dining sheds have proven to be one of the best, most popular policy innovations of the pandemic era. But even among those of us who love them, there is always a tiny, nagging concern in the back of the brain: what if a vehicle swerved a little too far this way?
That Final Destination-esque scenario played out last night in Greenwich Village when a Department of Sanitation (DSNY) truck struck an outdoor dining shed, dragging it about ten feet with diners inside.
The incident happened at Bar Six, located at West 13th Street and Sixth Avenue, around 6:30 p.m. during dinner service on Monday. A police spokesperson said the 30-year-old driver was backing up the vehicle, after collecting some trash on the corner of the block, when he "accidentally backed into the outdoor dining structure causing property damage."
Two people who were dining inside of it at the time got taken along for the ride, according to police.
"It was shocking, definitely felt like an earthquake, seeing a structure drag across the street," said Anna Socolof, a manager at Bar Six. "I was worried for the safety of our customers, and also for the safety of everyone involved."
Socolof told Curbed last night that they “previously notified a local paper about concerns over just such a possibility, and asked the DSNY to be vigilant in the neighborhood.”
Police say that no one was injured in the incident, and no summonses were issued.
“Sanitation Workers have an incredibly difficult job keeping our streets clean," DSNY spokesperson Joshua Goodman said. "We are relieved that no one was hurt in this incident, and will be conducting a full investigation.”
Goodman added that besides a "very minor collision" during snow plowing last February, there have been no other such incidents involving a DSNY vehicle he can recall.
Over the summer, former Governor Andrew Cuomo signed legislation extending the usage of municipal spaces for restaurants until at least mid-2022.
Mayor Bill de Blasio previously vowed to make Open Restaurants, as well as its sister program Open Streets, “permanent and year-round.” According to a poll conducted by Data for Progress, two-thirds of residents agreed that the “city was right to close its streets to cars and open them to pedestrians and restaurants.”
Democratic mayoral candidate Eric Adams told Gothamist he was in favor of continuing and expanding the entire Open Streets program, as well: "Ideally, I believe that open restaurants and open storefronts programs are integrated directly into open streets, creating truly vibrant, bustling commercial corridors that benefit our local economy as much as our cityscape and quality of life."
