Taco Beach gets neighborly

TACO BEACH OPENS and invites neighbors

Young people identifying themselves as Los Altos Taco Beach employees walked the LACAN neighborhood Friday May 31^st inviting neighbors to stop by 5pm-9pm for free food as the restaurant had its soft opening.

Local residents next to the establishment  and the owner had a rocky beginning when they received letters from the California Alcohol Beverage Control agency in September of last year that the owner had requested to stay open until 2:00 am with a full bar. Residents filed a formal petition opposing the license application.

After a meeting arranged by Councilman O'Donnell became tense, the neighbors achieved restrictions through the Long Beach Planning Commission on a CUP. Residents then insisted that similar restrictions be added to the state license before they withdrew their protest. As a result, many of the restrictions in the Long Beach CUP will be attached to the building regardless of ownership.

Councilman De Long warned Los Altos about this....

Late night Los Altos Center “mystery noise” disturbs

LACAN neighbors

Earlier this week neighbors in the LACAN neighborhood posted a comment about "noise mystery bangs at night" on the Nextdoor Los Altos website coming from the Los Altos Center.It was speculated that the noises may be coming from the parking lot behind Ecco's and Bai Plu Thai & Sushi on Bellflower between Stearns and Abbeyfield.

What is likely not known by area neighbors is that Bai Plu Thai was granted special permission in 2008 by the Long Beach City Council to dump their trash (with the associated dumpster noise) until 12:30 am on a nightly basis.

The special council action took place during an otherwise routine approval of the restaurant's ABC license on March 11, 2008. 

Adding insult to injury, the 12:30 a.m. time was approved in spite of a 10:00 p.m. recommendation by Councilman Gary Delong about his experience with the noise in the Belmont Shore Business District Adjacent Neighborhoods.

If you would like to view a two-minute video of the council action, the recording is available online at:

CLICK ON link: http://longbeach.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=12&clip_id=1955&meta_id=184032

  The "additional condition" of 12:30 a.m. did not appear on the original list of conditions, but it is documented in the city council meeting minutes (excerpt below).  You'll notice that it the wording includes  the phrase "not be allowed" to make it sound like a restriction.  This is the furthest thing from a noise "restriction", and a policy of dumping trash after midnight is an unnecessary safety/security risk for the restaurant and disruption to the neighbors directly behind the parking lot.

COUNCIL ITEM FROM March 11, 2008

(08-0195) Recommendation to receive and file the application of Bai Plu Thai & Aki Sushi Bar Incorporated, dba Bai Plu Thai & Sushi Bar, for an original Alcoholic Beverage Control License, at 2119 North Bellflower Boulevard, with conditions.  (District 4)

 Suggested Action: Approve recommendation.

Motion: Approve recommendation, with an additional condition that trash dumping not be allowed after 12:30 A.M.

Moved by  O'Donnell, seconded by Gabelich.

Vote: Approve recommendation, with an additional condition that trash dumping not be allowed after 12:30 A.M. (Carried 7-0)

Yes: B. Lowenthal, S. Lowenthal, DeLong, O'Donnell, Schipske, Andrews, and Gabelich.

Absent: Reyes Uranga, Lerch.

For those of you who are members of Nextdoor Los Altos , please feel free to post the link to this LACAN item on the Nextdoor website.

Mayoral candidate Damon Dunn at Los Altos Center

Long Beach Mayoral candidate Dunn at Eccos

Los Altos realtor Michelle "K" Kreinheder hosted a "meet and greet" for Long Beach Mayoral candidate Damon Dunn at the Los Altos Center Eccos Pizza on Wednesday May 29, 2013.

Dunn introduced himself by explaining his background then answered questions from around 25 mostly Los Altos neighborhood residents for about an hour and a half.

Los Altos TACO BEACH gets new signage

Los Altos CAN UPDATE

 Los Altos Center Adjacent Neighborhoods

Los Altos Taco Beach Restruant gets new sign

Los Altos Taco Beach adds mod signage

The Los Altos Taco Beach added mod-style orange signage on Monday Memorial Day as crews continue to work almost daily on the new establishment.  The orange pop against the brown building is a welcome sign that distracts from the lone anorexic surfer on a pile of rocks “art” piece on the Abbeyfield wall.  It is hard to believe that the same design team could come up with the great looking color scheme, sleek interior, mod signage and the Abbeyfield wall “art”.

Neighbors who have looked inside the windows note the numerous big screen televisions. Yes, this is a restaurant- not a sports bar.  The Type 47 license is explicit that alcohol sales MAY NOT exceed food sales quarterly. In addition, number 2 of the eleven ABC Restrictions (that apply in perpetuity) specifically address that restriction and requires that the establishment's records “be made available to the Department on demand” .  

The full text of conditional use item number 2 reads:

“2. The quarterly gross sales of alcoholic beverages shall not exceed the gross sales of food during the same period. The licensee shall at all times maintain records that reflect separately the gross sale of food and the gross sales of alcoholic beverages of the licensed business. Said records shall be kept no less frequently than on a quarterly basis and shall be made available to the Department on demand.”

More Taco Beach Los Altos press

Tim Grobaty: Please remind us to stay out of the restaurant business

By Tim Grobaty, Columnist

Long Beach Press Telegrampresstelegram.com

Posted:   05/14/2013 06:31:48 PM PDT

ART CRITICISM: The Los Altos Center Adjacent Neighborhoods (LACAN) blog has returned to its favorite gripe: the as-yet-unopened Taco Beach at 2099 Bellflower Blvd.
The subject this time isn't Taco Beach's perceived failure to meet one of the breathtaking array of 30 special conditions imposed upon it but, rather a fairly subdued mural of a surfer in silhouette holding a board and standing on a pile of rocks. LACAN is calling it a "tacky mural that is now the welcoming fixture to our neighborhood. "
Taco Beach (or "Tacky Beach" as LACAN now calls it) owner Kevan Vance is being typically reasonable about the complaint.
"If someone finds an artist they like more and want to pay for a different mural, we'll be glad to let them put it up. "

FULL ARTICLE LINK:

http://www.presstelegram.com/news/ci_23242247/tim-grobaty-please-remind-us-stay-out-restaurant

New Taco Beach restricted from advertising to CSULB

By Jovanna Madrigal

CSULB Daily 49er

Taco Beach is expected to open its second location on the corner of Bellflower Boulevard and Abbeyfield Street, and due to local residents’ response, the restaurant will not be able to advertise to a key demographic: Cal State Long Beach students.

During an October public planning commission meeting, Los Altos residents discussed the approval of the new Taco Beach location’s conditional liquor permit. John Morris, co-owner of Legends Sports Bar in Belmont Shore, said he attended the meeting to offer moral support to Taco Beach owner, Kevan Vance.

Morris said residents of the Los Altos neighborhood are apprehensive of the new business because they don’t want students to be drunk and disorderly in their neighborhood.

A Mexican restaurant featuring a full ball and happy hour deals, Taco Beach has another location on Pine Avenue in Downtown Long Beach and is open from 11 to 2 a.m. every day.

The planning commissioners voted unanimously to approve the new Taco Beach’s liquor permit, on the condition that Vance doesn’t advertise to CSULB students for one year, Morris said.

According to the City of Long Beach’s Communication Assistant Jackie Medina, the Taco Beach liquor permit was approved with conditions and restrictions the restaurant must abide by.

She also said that if the site or property — whether it continues as Taco Beach or another establishment — is used as a restaurant licensed to sell alcohol, the conditions of the license will still apply.

“The business is approved to open but with specific conditions that the owner/operator agrees to comply with,” Medina said via email. “The condition prohibits the marketing of Happy Hours and promotions. It is the owner's responsibility to ensure that the marketing/advertising of the business is in compliance with this condition.”

Recently, Vance put up an advertisement on Craigslist, seeking employees for the new location. He had initially listed CSULB as Taco Beach’s location, but Morris said residents called the City of Long Beach and complained that Vance was advertising to CSULB. The Taco Beach owner was then asked to take down the advertisement.

“It just goes to show you that the neighbors are watching,” Morris said. “It’s unbelievable. I have my enemies, and I have the people who love me. I could care less. I just think it’s unbelievable the way they treat people. It’s beyond belief.”

Although the business is restricted from advertising to CSULB, students said they think the restaurant only enhances the area.

“The business should be allowed to be opened because there are already venues on campus that serve alcohol,” Kevin Argueta, a freshman political science major, said. “Citizens should not be selfish and should allow the CSULB area to be more of a college student environment.”

Vance and Los Altos residents did not respond to the Daily 49er’s requests for comment.

As of now, there is no current information on the new Taco Beach’s opening date.

LINK TO STORY:

http://www.daily49er.com/news/new-taco-beach-restricted-from-advertising-to-csulb-1.2827863

Taco Beach takes a tacky turn

Los Altos Taco Beach takes a tacky turn with rock bound surfer mural and becomes “Tacky Beach”

The Los Altos Center Adjacent Neighborhoods were hopeful when Taco Beach owner Kevan Vance made good on his promise to upgrade the outside of the former Best Place Café.

New lighting, a rebuilt and refurbished patio, and muted brown color scheme seemed to go well with the overall neighborhood and upscale businesses and adjacient revamped medical building.

While the neighborhood was still worried about what a Taco Beach Taco Tuesday might bring, they had no idea that Thursday May 9^th would turn out to be Tacky Thursday.

On that day, Taco Beach took a turn towards tackiness with a brown on brown over 6 foot high pointillism “painting” of a lone surfer on a pile of rocks stuck on the Bellflower Blvd. corner of the Abbeyfield Street façade of the Taco Beach building.  This is no Vincent van Gogh (who’s 1897 self-portrait done in pointillism is considered a masterpiece) but a tacky mural that is now the welcoming fixture to our neighborhood.

Los Altos "Tacky Beach" mural

The only question now is…how many more tacky Taco Beach murals will adore the once promising looking building?

Not even open and the Los Altos Taco Beach now has a nick-name- Tacky Beach.