RESTAURANTS and cafes in the Capital are being forced to scrap outdoor seating areas after being hit with soaring licence costs.

The city council's new charging system has led to up to eight-fold price increases.

Independent traders said they cannot afford to put tables and chairs outside, when a licence that was less than £200 last year can now cost up to £1600.

The city council today said it was forced to respond to the huge demand for outdoor drinking and dining in the wake of the smoking ban, which has led to higher administration and enforcement costs. But restaurateurs attacked the local authority for wanting to encourage a continental-style atmosphere in the city, while at the same time penalising businesses.

The new pricing system replaces a confusing set-up based on the time taken to assess an application. Now, traders are charged £65 for each square metre of outdoor space, or £85 in the world heritage site.

Campbell Barrie, owner of the Two Thin Laddies cafe in Tollcross, said his six-month licence for four sets of tables and chairs cost £110 last year, but has soared to £780 this year.

"Given the recent increases in fuel and utility charges, food stocks and almost every related business cost, these are hard times for small independent cafes like mine – a fact which clearly does not concern this council," he said.

"When the figure of £780 was quoted, my jaw hit the ground. I can't think of anything else in the world which has risen in price by nearly 700 per cent in just one year. The council's expressed aim is to adopt a more cosmopolitan approach to eating and drinking outside, but then they do stuff to us like this.

"As an independently run business, with nearby competition from multinational and national chains far more able, perhaps, to absorb such an increase, there must surely be a fairer system pro-rated to income and profit."

The council has agreed to extend the operating hours of outdoor seating areas from 9pm until 11pm, however, this includes an additional one-off charge of £150 per hour per year. Tony Crolla, who runs Vittoria on Leith Walk, said his 12-month licence has risen from £175 to £1600.

"This is just about revenue earning," he said. "The licence for our restaurant on George IV Bridge is due for renewal this week, but we're not going to bother."

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Green councillor Alison Johnstone, who visited the Two Thin Laddies to discuss the issue, said: "This isn't Starbucks we are talking about – this is an independent local business, which just can't afford this sort of increase."

Nigel Duncan, vice-chairman of Edinburgh's Federation of Small Businesses, also said the prices are too high.

But a council spokeswoman said: "The popularity of outdoor seating has grown immensely over the past two years. The council has had to put provisions in place to make sure that the system works not only for businesses, but for the public too. There is now a clear, unambiguous system in place which sets out pricing, procedures for applications, complaints and appeals."

"Businesses are now in a position to decide how much space they want to occupy for commercial purposes depending on the available space."

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Readers comments [5]

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City paves way for street displays charge

CITY chiefs are considering a new permit system for shops that display plants or other items on Edinburgh's pavements.

The crackdown, which would affect dozens of traders who decorate their shop fronts, was today widely criticised by the business community.

The idea is the latest attempt by the council to "de-clutter" the streets, following a blitz on advertising boards that are larger than the regulation one metre tall and 0.75 metres wide.

A council spokeswoman said the system would not apply to a-boards, or items for sale such as fruit and veg or clothing – which are already illegal on a public footpath, and could lead to a £1000 fine. But Nigel Duncan, vice-chairman of Edinburgh's Federation of Small Businesses, said: "I know a lot of shop frontages that are enhanced by pot plants or furniture. We need a logical and sensible approach to this."

Source: Edinburgh Evening News [6], Tuesday, 13th May, 2008

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Campaign to lower traders' seating fees

BUSINESS chiefs today mounted a campaign to reverse inflation-busting price rises for outdoor seating areas.

The city council's new charging system has led to up to eight-fold price increases, and independent traders are now struggling to pay for outdoor tables and chairs.

Some licences have soared from under £200 to as much as £1600.

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The city council's economic development leader, Tom Buchanan, has told officials to look at reimbursing restaurant and pub owners who are also coping with disruption from the tram works.

In an e-mail to councillors, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) said this was "good news".

But the chairman of the Edinburgh branch, Graham Russell, added: "I shall now be requesting my Edinburgh FSB Committee to agree to lobby, together with other business organisations, to reverse the totally unacceptable and completely unaffordable level of increases in the 'table tax'."

The new pricing system replaces a set-up based on the time taken to assess an application.

Traders are now charged £65 for each square metre of space, or £85 in the world heritage site.

Source: Edinburgh Evening News [8], Tuesday, 20th May, 2008

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Outside seating fee waived

TRADERS on the tram route have been told they will not be charged fees for their outdoor seating areas this year.

Some businesses may also be entitled to a partial refund of last year's fees if they were adversely affected when tram roadworks got under way in 2007.

The move comes in the wake of anger from traders over a new charging system, which has led to up to eight-fold price increases in licences for outdoor seating areas.

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Writing in her leader's report, Councillor Jenny Dawe, said: "Applications for tables and chair permits around tram work sites will be treated sensitively and no fee will be collected this year until the ongoing works adjacent to the properties have been completed.

"Letters are also being sent to all tables and chairs permit holders in Leith Walk advising them that they may be entitled to a partial refund for last year."

Source: Edinburgh Evening News [10], Monday, 26th May, 2008

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