Many restaurants on Oxford Square adding outdoor dining options

Fifteen restaurants around the Oxford Square will soon offer outside dining.

Around oxford square will offer outside dinning soon.

Wtva's alexis jones is live in oxford with how one restaurant owner says he will benefit from it.

I'm outside of funkys where construction workers have started building on a patio.

The owner says he can't even explain how happy he is to have outside dining.

"extremely excited and extremely ready to see people around eating and drinking and kinda enjoying oxford."

Lee harris is the owner of funkys pizza and daiquiri bar.

Harris said once construction workers are done, he will be able to add 40 more seats outside.

He said he jumped at the opportunity to double his bar's capacity.

Nat: construction sot: "to get through this pandemic it's been hard on everyone.

Certainly when bars and restaurants can add more seating, which can increase their revenue its..

For me it was a no brainer."

Lee harris- owner of funkys trt: 12 harris and the other owners will have to pay 192 dollars per parking spot each month.

But thanks to residents's donations, they don't have to pay their first month rent.

"for them to reach out and do that and support this local economy and us local restaurants..

We've all been hit hard from this.

It tremendous."

Standup: oxford mayor robyn tannehill believes the additional seating will help bring back revenue owners lost during the pandemic.

Sot: "we know that it is so important to the future of our downtown shopping district to have a vibrant restaurant scene.

So this is just one way that we can get everybody over the jump."

Robyn tannehill- mayor of oxford trt: 11 even though restaurants can now have 75% capacity, the mayor said the licenses are still needed.

She said small restaurants like funkys need extra space to social distance.

The owner of funkys said his patio will be open to customers this friday.

In oxford.

Alexis jones.

Wtva 9 news.

Since monday,