Greensboro, NC Special Events & Permits: Sidewalk Dining & Cafés (2026)

Under Greensboro Code § 26-244(a), the city manager or designee may issue permits to restaurants for serving food and beverages on city sidewalks and pedestrian ways within the Downtown Sidewalk Cafe District, bounded by Fisher Avenue, Gate City Boulevard, Murrow Boulevard and Spring Street, plus 150 feet extending from those boundary streets. The application must include a scaled site plan, proof of liability insurance ($100,000 combined property/bodily injury, $300,000 aggregate), copies of health and ABC permits, and a sworn statement disclosing any alcohol or controlled-substance violations in the preceding five years (§ 26-244(c)).

To be issued, the cafe must operate under the same management and name as the associated restaurant, may only be open when the restaurant is open, and its seating cannot exceed 50 percent of the restaurant's interior seating capacity (§ 26-244(d)). Five feet of unobstructed sidewalk must remain for pedestrian passage, and the cafe area must be enclosed by ADA-compliant, anchored barricades 36 to 42 inches tall. § 18B-1001, the alcohol area has no more than two points of ingress/egress, and exit signage warns against removing drinks (§ 26-244(e)). Permits run for two years, are non-transferable, and must be renewed 30 days before expiration (§ 26-244(i)).