When it comes into effect on Saturday evening, the change will likely go unnoticed amid the general hullabaloo of the Fête de la Musique, the nationwide celebration of music that takes place every year on June 21. However, from that day through to September 14, around 4,000 summer terraces in Paris will be allowed to stay open to the public until 11 pm, an hour later than the standard 10 pm closing time.
Since the crisis triggered by the Covid-19 epidemic, restaurateurs in the French capital have been eligible for permits to expand their terraces onto sidewalks or parking spaces between April 1 and October 31. In the intervening years, the temporary terraces have become the subject of heated tensions between Paris City Hall, eager to boost the restaurant sector, and local residents, frustrated by noise disturbances, who have the support of opposition politicians.
City Hall's announcement of the extended hours on June 5 drew a quick response from neighborhood associations around the city, especially from the dynamic 10th, 11th and 18th arrondissements, in the northeast. They issued a joint statement denouncing "lies" by Paris City Hall to justify its decision. Among other things, they criticized a lack of dialogue with city authorities, a recurring complaint among such groups, whose real representativeness is difficult to measure.
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