Stonington — Despite complaints about noise from a neighbor, the Board of Warden and Burgesses on Monday agreed to let Noah's restaurant continue its sidewalk dining through June 30.

The board did remove two tables closest to the Church Street home of Mary Beth Bartholet and decided to reevaluate the situation and decide whether to let the popular eatery continue outdoor dining when it meets in mid-June. 

It also voted to allow Water Street Cafe to continue using the four tables it has used on the sidewalk for the same time period as long as it files the necessary supporting documents.

The borough allowed the two restaurants to have the tables for outdoor dining last year to help offset the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Both restaurants do not have local zoning approval for outdoor dining but an executive order by Gov. Ned Lamont during the pandemic allows municipalities to make temporary exceptions.   

While a handful of residents told the board Monday they supported the extension of sidewalk dining to help borough restaurants get back on their feet,  Bartholet who lives next to Noah's on Church Street, asked  board members if they "would want outdoor dining at your front door."

Pointing out that Noah's tables extend to her front gate, she said that "if we go outside we almost have to ask people 'are you enjoying your meal?'"

With Noah's open from 7:45 a.m. to 9 p.m. and employees getting the tables ready before and after that time, Bartholet said it was so noisy last summer she could not keep her windows open and had to turn up the television.

"We suffered all last summer.We got through it and we didn't complain but the thought of another summer... We're dreading it, just dreading it," she said.

She added though that she adores the people who work at Noah's and supports the restaurant. She said that if the outdoor seating is made permanent it would harm property values. Last year Noah's had 30 seats on the sidewalk along Church and Water streets.

Warden Jeff Callahan explained that even though Lamont has now lifted capacity limits on indoor restaurants, neither Noah's or the Water Street Cafe can return to their previous number of seats because of the need to maintain six feet of social distancing.     

Bartholet said she was agreeable to the plan that will remove the two tables closest to her house and extend the seating until June. At that point she said she hopes Noah's can return to its normal indoor seating.

While some residents have suggested blocking off a section of Water Street for outdoor dining, Callahan said that would create problems for emergency access.

j.wojtas@theday.com