Pico Rivera, CA Special Events & Permits: Sidewalk Dining & Cafés (2026)

Section 18.22.160, Outdoor Dining, splits regulation of restaurant patio seating into two tracks depending on where the tables sit. Outdoor dining on privately owned property is permitted as an accessory use to any eating and drinking establishment, but only after approval of a Zoning Consistency Review under Section 18.05.060. Outdoor dining that spills into the public right-of-way, the sidewalk itself, needs more: an Administrative Use Permit under Section 18.05.020 and a separate encroachment permit or similar approval from the Public Works Director, since the City is authorizing private tables on public land.

Either type of dining area must meet current Building Code and ADA accessibility rules, including a level, non-raised surface unless a ramp is provided, one wheelchair-accessible seat for every 20 seats, and an accessible path at least 36 inches wide. Food and drinks served outside must be prepared inside the building housing the primary restaurant, and alcohol service outdoors must comply with the City's Section 18.22.050 alcohol-sales conditions and the State Alcoholic Beverage Control Board. Hours outdoors cannot exceed the indoor restaurant's own hours of operation.

Physically, the area generally needs a delineating barrier of walls or hedges between 30 and 42 inches high, which can rise to 60 inches with a clear glass or similar weather enclosure on top, though a single row of tables within 48 inches of the building facade that doesn't block an entrance is exempt from the barrier requirement. A single freestanding menu board up to 15 inches wide and 24 inches long is allowed near the entrance, and a 36-inch clear pedestrian and vehicular path of travel must be preserved in the right-of-way.