Laredo, TX Special Events & Permits: Sidewalk Dining & Cafés (2026)

Laredo sidewalk cafe rules live inside the Arts and Entertainment (AE) district supplementary standards at Section 24-65.19(12) of the Land Development Code, and they apply only within that district, bounded roughly by Scott Street, Zacate Creek, and the Rio Grande. Placing tables, chairs, or any obstruction in the public right-of-way is unlawful without first obtaining a Sidewalk Cafe License from the Building Services Department, and the license is available only to a restaurant serving food prepared and cooked on site.

The dimensional rules are specific: a cafe needs a sidewalk at least ten feet wide from the building facade to the back of curb, or at least eight feet wide if it operates between 6:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m., and a clear four-foot pedestrian path must stay open at all times, narrowing to three feet around obstructions like trees or parking meters. Seating is capped at one table and two chairs per fifteen square feet of cafe area, expandable to four chairs per table if the four-foot path is preserved, and the cafe cannot exceed the seating capacity printed on its license.

The application must include a certificate of insurance naming the city as an additional insured, a scaled site plan, notice to abutting property owners and tenants, and copies of the operator's health, fire, and TABC permits where applicable. The license costs fifty dollars the first year and one hundred dollars each year after, with a twenty-five dollar transfer fee, and every license expires December 31 regardless of issue date. The code states there is no waiver or variance available for any sidewalk cafe requirement because the right-of-way use is a non-delegable City Council function.