Community Board 2 last night approved only one of six applications for new "pop-up" cafes that are temporary curbside seating areas that replace parking spaces, according to an article today by Hannah Rappleye at the New York Post.

"More than 20 speakers railed against the controversial cafes, the latest brainchild of Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan, who also has been leading the drive for more bicycle lanes," the article said.

The article said that Paul Tschinkel, 72, circulated a petition calling for Sadik-Khan's resignation, adding that her mother, Jane McCarthy, is a member of the community board and voted in favor of three of the cafes, "insisting she has no conflict of interest."

"The board, which has the final say, disapproved applications for cafes on MacDougal Street, Crosby Street, Fifth Avenue and West Broadway. The only approved application was submitted by Local Cafe on Sullivan Street," the article said.

The DOT launched a pilot program last year that allowed some Financial District restaurateurs to turn a few parking spots into temporary outdoor cafe seating, which everyone seemed to love and this year it wanted to expand the program, according to an article today at ny.curbed.com by Joey Arak.

Those who spoke in favor of the pop-up caf¿s were "drowned out by boos and hisses," the article said.

In a striking rejection of a pilot program by the Department of Transportation to encourage New Yorkers to "eat in the gutter," Community Board 2 yesterday overwhelmingly rejected seven of eight applications for so-called "pop-up" caf¿s, according to an article by Sean Sweeney, the director of the SoHo Alliance and chair of the landmarks committee of Community Board 2, at NearSay.com.

Sidewalk cafes may be pleasant amenities on wide, commercial boulevards, but the city restricts them to commercial districts because the noise, crowds, garbage and vermin they generate cause too many problems in residential neighborhoods, the article maintained, adding that "DOT sought to sidestep the law that prohibits them in residential districts by placing them, not on the sidewalk, but in the street by the gutter, mere inches from moving traffic and their harmful emissions."

The temporary seating areas are made of wood and are only high enough to be level with the curb and only wide enough for a parking space.

"At the community board meeting, famed restaurant critic," according to Mr. Sweeney's article, restaurant critic "Mimi Sheraton, decried the idea as nonsensical and detrimental to the character of the Village, further suggesting that her neighbors boycott any business that sets up one of these operations."

An editorial in this week's edition of The Villager said that the "pop-up cafes" seem "like another good deal from the city," adding that "a dozen of these cafe spaces will be added around the city under this pilot program, which is slated to run during the next two years from May 1 to Oct. 15."

"With the list of applicants narrowed down to 17," the editorial continued, "about half of them are for establishments in the Community Board 2 area (south of 14th St., north of Canal St., and east of Bowery/Fourth Ave.)"

"The pop-ups would have seating and tables and be open for anyone to use for free. No alcohol or smoking would be allowed. C.B. 2 is stipulating that the pop-ups be closed up in the evenings at 9 p.m. One could grab a chair and read a book, or go inside to the business and order a sandwich or coffee, etc., and then eat it at the sidewalk extension."

The pop-up cafes are modeled after what are known as "parklets" in San Francisco, as well as outdoor cafes found in Nova Scotia, Canada, and Florence, Italy, according to an article by Aline Reynolds in this week's edition of The Villager.

"The quirky cafe spaces can also help alleviate sidewalk congestion by carving out spots for pedestrians to rest, read or chat with friends," the article said.