On June 2, 2015, the City Council unanimously approved the design and cost-sharing structure of the Santa Cruz Street Café pilot program. The program allows merchants to convert street parking to seating or other amenities in partnership with the City. The Street Cafés will feature a raised cement platform flush with the sidewalk and landscaped planters as a buffer. The City Council voted to expand this pilot from the one current location in front of Left Bank to up to seven locations. The City Council reviewed two designs by Ian Moore Designs, the first being a cost-efficient base design featuring prefabricated cement planters as a buffer, while the second was a more costly, enhanced design featuring wood planters. The City Council agreed to contribute 70 percent of the base design for angled configurations and 75 percent of the base design for parallel configurations, with a maximum City contribution of $30,000 per installment. Businesses have the option of paying the cost up front or installments over a two year period. If the business pays installments, the City will contribute 5 percent less for each parking configuration. Businesses are welcome to construct more than the base design, but do so at their own expense. All downtown businesses are encouraged to apply now for the pilot program. Applications will be accepted until July 17, with construction planned for the fall.