To help restaurants survive the COVID-19 pandemic, the Beverly Hills City Council in 2020 launched OpenBH, a program that eased outdoor dining regulations and allowed restaurants to construct “parklets,” or dining areas that extend to public areas.
OpenBH was intended as a temporary solution, and turning it into a permanent program has been no easy task. After creating two subcommittees and holding about 16 months of stakeholder meetings, the City Council on Dec. 12 approved new outdoor dining regulations that build upon the OpenBH rules.
