Lightfoot announces winners of the Winter Design Challenge: cabins, blocks, and heated tables – RADIO.COM

CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Winter is coming...and this year with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, there is much more to fear than White Walkers. But don't fret, because you can still dine out in the cold, as the city is preparing for new, innovative outdoor dining options.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Thursday the winners of the Winter Design Challenge a first-of-its-kind competition for community members to reimagine the winter outdoor dining experience in Chicago.

After receiving over 600 submissions, a team of judges that included architects, designers, chefs, restauranteurs and servers selected three ideas that not only capture the spirit of Chicago, but can provide feasible and safe options for Chicagoans to enjoy dining out as temperatures drop.

The winners of the Winter Design Challenge are:

Amy Young, ASD | SKY, Cozy Cabins: Small modular, adjoining cabins that fit within the footprint of a standard parking space.

We are honored that our concept was chosen for the Chicago Winter Dining Challenge. Our Cozy Cabins idea focused on creating a warm, welcoming experience to encourage Chicago residents to safely dine in rather than take out, said Amy Young of ASD | SKY. We wanted to create an outdoor destination centered around new experiences, neighborhood connections, and a sense of communityelements lost while dining at home. We hope this idea helps support small businesses and safely bring people together during this difficult year.

Neil Reindel, Block Party: A flexible approach to outdoor dining that is adaptable and easy to implement for many different sites and street configurations.

We are excited to have had the chance to reimagine our public spaces and provide Chicagoans an opportunity to experience the city in a fun and unique way. Chicago has always been a resilient city when faced with difficult times," said Neil Reindel. With Block Party we wanted to provide a warm place for people to reconnect as we move forward through the winter and into 2021.

Ellie Henderson, Heated Tables: Modify the Japanese Kotatsu, an economical way to keep warm and cozy in cold months.

I want to thank the City of Chicago, IDEO and the Illinois Restaurant Association for choosing my winter dining idea, said Ellie Henderson. My hope is that my proposal for using heated tables will help restaurants adapt, providing a novel open-air dining experience for their patrons that is safe and comfortably warm through colder months in 2020 and beyond.

The winners of the Winter Design Challenge will each receive a $5,000 cash prize. Additionally, the IRA will be selecting local construction firms that will start the process of bringing these ideas to life. The process will include design development and technical refinement. Once complete, the firms will be able to construct prototypes that can be tested at Chicago neighborhood restaurants in the coming weeks. The IRA will choose those pilot restaurants, and the construction will be paid for with funds that BMO Harris has previously contributed for this purpose, the Mayor's Office said.

"As we approach the winter months and adapt our COVID-19 response accordingly, we owe it to our restaurants to make sure they have what they need to continue keeping their doors open and serving their communities," said Mayor Lightfoot. "Thanks to IRA and the outstanding creativity of our Winter Dining Challenge winners, we will be able to not only make this a reality, but do so in a way that is safe and showcases our City's innovative spirit. I extend a huge congratulations to each of our Winter Dining Challenge winners."

MayorLightfoot also announced in collaboration with the Illinois Restaurant Association (IRA), DoorDash will be providing $500,000 in financial support to Chicago restaurants to help cover the costs of winterizing their outdoor dining areas.

As winter weather looms on the horizon, Chicago area restaurants will be able to apply to receive a $5,000 grant to defray winterization expenses such as the cost of heating equipment, additional safety materials to improve indoor dining, upgrades for air filtration systems, bulk orders of blankets for patrons, and more. Applications open on Oct. 16, and recipients will be notified by the end of December.

To qualify, restaurants must be located in Chicago with three or fewer locations operating currently, 50 employees or fewer in 2019, and $3M or less in 2019 annual revenue per store.

Restaurants not only entertain us. They employ a lot of people. They are critical, not just to the employees in the individual restaurants themselves. But think about the supply chain that goes into supporting the restaurant industry in our city. Its vital that we do everything that we can to uplift them to give them a fighting chance, Lightfoot said.

To help restaurants and bars operate outside, the city will be holding webinars next week on safe outdoor operations. To register and learn more, visitwww.chicago.gov/businesseducation.

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Lightfoot announces winners of the Winter Design Challenge: cabins, blocks, and heated tables - RADIO.COM