MidHudsonNews [dot] com is reporting the city of Poughkeepsie is moving forward with a plan to allow restaurants and retail businesses to expand outdoor seating and displays in response to social distancing requirements enacted during the COVID-19 pandemic. The free program is designed to help owners of restaurants and retail stores compensate for social distancing restrictions that would potentially limit the number of people in their establishment at one time. “The City of Poughkeepsie’s Restaurant & Retail Outdoor Expansion Program has been established to ensure businesses have the greatest ability to operate successfully during the COVID-19 economic recovery,” said Mayor Rob Rolison. “The current initiative entails leveraging private and public outdoor space not typically permitted for business activity, to be used as temporary expanded areas for restaurants and retail businesses while maintaining public safety requirements.” The city has created a one-page certification request for businesses that requires a site sketch and can be emailed to the Planning Department. The plan permits outdoor dining, subject to availability and safety precautions, and businesses will be held to their existing maximum occupancy number. The plan allows for awnings, umbrellas, planters or other temporary furnishings or structures that help create and maintain an attractive appearance. Outdoor cooking is prohibited, and outdoor seating must be closed to the public after 10 p.m. Both the village of Catskill and the city of Hudson are weighing similar outdoor expansion proposals. Read the full story at MidHudsonNews [dot] com.