Planners okay Greek Island outdoor dining

By Grace Lovins

Greek Islands restaurant, at 221 Hamilton Row in Birmingham, was given the green light by the city’s planning board to move forward with an outdoor dining application after final review on Wednesday, May 10.

The restaurant is proposing to add a new deck with 10 tables which can seat 32 patrons.

The proposed deck will take up two street parking spaces at the front of the building, but since a parking garage is located behind the business, city staff said they were not concerned over the loss. It will also project into the amenity zone, or the pedestrian right-of-way, but will still leave five feet of sidewalk space between the building front and the deck.

Exterior changes were also proposed for a new sign with halo lettering. ‘Greek Islands Birmingham’ will be a 40 square foot sign with reverse channel lettering – individual letters with lights behind each letter. The restaurant still needs to submit measurements for the sign’s projection from the building before approval from the city commission.

Since the city commission has not yet approve the newly drafted outdoor dining ordinance, the deck is still subject to current outdoor dining restrictions. Chairperson Scott Clein emphasized that when the ordinance passes, the deck will either need to be altered or reconstructed since the new rules will not allow for a projection into the amenity zone.

With little discussion or concerns, board members voted 7-0 to approve the final site plan and design review. Alternate board members Jason Emerine and Nasseem Ramin voted in place of Bryan Williams and Stuart Jeffares.