A new Puget Sound area interactive map of restaurants offering takeout and delivery during the COVID-19 outbreak is available for customers as well as business owners who want to add their restaurant to the site.
Spearheaded by the City of Seattle, the #SupportPugetSoundSmallBiz map allows users to search for open small businesses in their neighborhood and navigate directly to a business’ website or third-party delivery service page. After launching the Seattle-specific map in late March, the City of Federal Way and municipalities from across the region reached out to Seattle Information Technology (ITD) and asked to participate.
To date, Federal Way, along with approximately 19 other cities and counties, are participating in the #SupportPugetSoundSmallBiz map and each municipality is working with its local economic development organizations to ensure restaurants are added to the map.
“I’m proud of our Information Technology Department GIS staff members who worked with Economic Development Director Tim Johnson to reach out and network with Federal Way restaurants to get their information added into this important interactive map,” Mayor Jim Ferrell said. “I want to thank the City of Seattle for laying the groundwork for this project and inviting other municipalities to participate. This is another example of our region teaming up to find creative solutions during this COVID-19 crisis.”
The #SupportPugetSoundSmallBiz map has received nearly 250,000 views, and averages about 2,200 visits per day. There are currently 2,600 small businesses in the map spread across King County, Pierce County and Snohomish County.
“In Seattle, we’re doing everything we can locally to support our small businesses during this unprecedented moment in history,” said Mayor Durkan. “We’ve invested millions of dollars directly in our most vulnerable small businesses and are working with our partners across government and in the private sector help many who are struggling.”
To use the map, residents can enter their location or drop a pin and find all the available restaurants near them. Once they select their restaurant, they can place a takeout or delivery order directly through the app or can receive directions to the restaurant.
If you own or work at a restaurant offering takeout/delivery, add your restaurant information by clicking on this link. It is a free service.
The map also connects users directly to third-party delivery services such as Uber Eats, DoorDash and Caviar to easily patronize a restaurant. Seattle Information Technology (ITD) built the map, and staff from municipalities across the Puget Sound partnered with community leaders and small business owners to populate the map with businesses.
Restaurant, bar, café and brewery owners can enter their information into a brief survey to see their business appear on the public-facing map within minutes.
To help ensure quality and consistent data, ITD has created an internal map and survey that business owners can use to enter their information. If you are a business owner and want to add yourself to the map, please email at supportsmallbiz@seattle.gov for instructions.
The necessary statewide “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order has caused restaurants to rely solely on delivery and takeout services for revenue, and many of these restaurants rely on third-party platforms to conduct takeout and delivery for them.
Each service agreement between restaurants and third-party companies varies, but some include commissions that are 30 percent or more of the purchase price.
The city of Seattle geographic information system (GIS) staff created the map to list restaurants offering takeout and delivery with details on location, hours and contact information. The site began with just Seattle eateries but expanded to numerous cities from Everett to Tacoma.
