What the Lakeside Exploratory Committee Really Said About a Restaurant
October 20. 2020
At the October 23, 2019, City council meeting, council member Ben Giles stated that a restaurant in Lakeside park was the number 5 recommendation from the Lakeside Park Exploratory Committees report. He also said the number one thing survey respondents wanted added to the park was a restaurant.
Let’s look at those claims. The fact is, the report shows “food options”- like food trucks, rolling vendors and concessions as the number 5 priority. A restaurant does not appear in the study until number 11- or 13 or 20 depending on what part of the report you read.
It is also noted in the report there is substantial citizen opposition to a privately operated restaurant at the park.
“Food options” is a very different goal than restaurant and the two have been conflated as meaning the same thing by Giles and in the Alternative Master Plan.
As far as the survey responses about what should be added to the park, roughly 5% of the 3200 survey takers answered “restaurant.” That is hardly consensus.
At that same council meeting, then council member Karyn Merkel stated that there had been a proposal in 2016 for a large pavilion called The Hub, which included a restaurant, but not only was the restaurant idea rejected by citizens, no operator of the restaurant could be secured at the time.
There was an opportunity for survey respondents to leave comments about each survey question. The number of comments opposing a restaurant was 140, the number supporting was 78. When asked about a beer garden, the report showed 128 comments opposing and 48 supporting. The agreement which the city has now signed off on states that the restaurant can serve anyone who is in the patio area around the restaurant. This amounts to…a beer garden!
The graphic here shows the actual final survey numbers concerning a beer garden and restaurant. 47.4% said no beer garden vs 33.4% yes. 42.4% said no restaurant vs 40% yes.
It is clear, most survey respondents did not want a restaurant or beer garden in Lakeside Park.
Why are Ben Giles and Lakeside Forward falsely citing the Lakeside Park Exploratory Committee as being strongly in favor of these 2 amenities at the park? That report and survey was issued before the current stand-alone restaurant was proposed at Lighthouse Point. Imagine what that survey might look like now.