Braintree business update: Get ready for cool-weather dining and “shop local MA”

​Extended outdoor dining and other COVID-19 recovery matters were on the agenda for the Braintree Chamber of Commerce business update meeting held September 14.
 
As a liaison between business leaders and government, the Chamber is hosting these business meetings for its members as well as the general public.
 
Chamber Chair Kim Kroha led the Q&A with Mayor Charles Kokoros, State Rep. Mark Cusack, Margaret Laforest of the Mass. Office of Business Development, and South Shore Chamber head Peter Forman.
 
Here’s the recap:

Outdoor dining to continue through cool weather

Braintree restaurants are free to offer expanded outdoor dining through the fall and winter (for 60 days after the end of the state of emergency), according to a recent announcement by Gov. Charlie Baker.
 

• Mayor Kokoros said the town will be communicating with restaurants currently licensed for outdoor service. The fire department must approve outdoor heaters and the building department will approve tents.
• Cities and towns can apply for funding to improve sidewalks, curbs, off-street parking lots and on-street parking spaces through the Shared Streets and Spaces program.
• The mayor announced that the Town recently secure a $291,000 Shared Streets grant, a program also discussed by Margaret Laforest. The Town will communicate details about this grant shortly.

 
“We’re seeing a lot of resiliency and people determined to make it through. A lot of businesses have adjusted by lowering expenses,” said Peter Forman, president and CEO of the South Shore Chamber of Commerce. “But we’re concerned about lingering unemployment and what early next year is going to look like.”
 
The mayor said Braintree restaurants continue to struggle and are worried about surviving through the winter without additional state or federal aid. “The landlords can only wait so long before people have to move out and close their business,” the mayor said. The mayor conveyed his support for local restaurants and is committed to working with the those and other Braintree businesses in any way possible.
 

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