The Saratoga City Council was split on whether to move forward with a pilot outdoor dining program for a fine dining restaurant in the city’s downtown after working for months to improve the city’s business scene.
In May, the city council decided to create an ad hoc committee to improve Saratoga’s business scene. Since then, the committee has been meeting with residents and community members to get feedback and come up with new ideas.
The committee finally finished its work and presented its findings and suggestions to the city council at a meeting on November 6. The results were broken down into suggestions for the whole city and suggestions for the Saratoga Village on Big Basin Way, which is often thought of as the city’s downtown.
The council unanimously agreed with the suggestions for the whole city, such as working on business grants and helping with marketing and promotion for the city. However, they did not agree with any suggestions that were specific to the Village.
Vice Mayor Belal Aftab and Councilmember Chuck Page, who are both on the ad hoc committee on economic vitality, wanted to move forward with a pilot outdoor dining program. This would allow Hero Ranch Kitchen to add more outdoor seating with help from city staff.
But Mayor Yan Zhao and Councilmember Tina Walia were against the suggestions. Zhao said that she agreed with the idea of making Saratoga more “vibrant,” but she didn’t think that the Saratoga Village needed to be revitalized. Instead, she said that the few events that happen there every year show that the area is a thriving economic hub.
She said, “I think our downtown is pretty lively.” “Our neighborhood has a lot of events.”
Zhao said she didn’t want to put money or time into the pilot program either because Saratoga was going to have a budget deficit and the sales tax money from Hero Ranch Kitchen’s outdoor dining wouldn’t be enough to make the city’s contribution worth it.
She said, “The math doesn’t make sense to me.”
Page and Aftab said they didn’t think the city would give more than a few thousand dollars to the outdoor dining project. Page said that businesses in the Village would fail if no one helped them.
“The next time you run for office, don’t say that you support businesses—especially in this town—because you do not at all.” Page said, which got cheers from the people in the community at the meeting.
Like others, Walia was worried about how the project would affect his money.
“I do support businesses and the lively atmosphere, but I am also very responsible with money,” she said.
Because she owns property in the Village, councilmember Kookie Fitzsimmons couldn’t take part in the discussion. Aftab’s motion to approve the recommendations failed by a vote of 2-2, with Zhao and Walia voting against it.
Zhao told his staff to bring a resolution to the council that would get rid of the ad hoc committee on economic vitality.
Recently, Saratoga’s economic health has been a controversial subject at city council meetings, even when it wasn’t on the agenda. People have been asking the city to do more to help the Saratoga Village.
Six people showed up in person on November 6 to talk about the issue, and many more wrote public comments about it before the meeting.
In a written public comment, Saratoga resident Ashis Roy said, “Saratoga’s unique charm should be kept, but we must also embrace progress and change to make sure our city’s sustainability.” “Our businesses are in danger without a clear plan for economic growth.”
