Hotel Cecil Restaurant's Alcohol Hearing a Stage for Main Street Debate
DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — Would a new restaurant in the Hotel Cecil displace residents? Monday, representatives from LACAN lobbied to have an application to sell beer and wine at proposed restaurant Tuck denied, making a variety of claims as to how its approval would negatively affect residents.
Associate Zoning Administrator Albert Landini found the displacement argument particularly curious, asking whether there were residents living in the ground floor space soon to be occupied by the restaurant.
Tuck, which would serve comfort food, is the latest in a number of single-name improvements opened by new management at the historic Main street hotel. This summer the hotel opened Stay, a boutique hotel / youth-hostel hybrid. The months since have seen the opening of convenience store Marty and gallery Arty.
While current efforts in the facility are upscale, the Cecil's gone through tough times in recent decades. Like many hotels in the Historic Core, the Cecil served a number of residential customers. Today, two floors of the hotel still house long-term tenants. Hotel ownership is engaged in a lawsuit with the city over the facility's placement on a residential hotel roster.
Representatives from LACAN, the Skid Row organization with a history of opposing changes on Main street, argued that those two floors of residents would be inconvenienced by noise and increased outdoor foot traffic from the restaurant.
Landini was emphatic that the zoning decision was not a housing issue, and asked the group if it had any documentation to support its claims.
Still, he left comments on the Conditional Use Permit application open for ten days in order for both the hotel and those against the application to submit additional information. Once that period is up, Landini will issue a decision.
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Haven on January 28, 2009, at 12:10PM – #1
LACANs mission statement seeks to "eradicate class barriers". It would be nice if their actions reflected this. Instead their actions yet again smack of classism.
Rich Alossi on January 28, 2009, at 02:53PM – #2
I'm an ardent supporter and vocal advocate for increased affordable housing, especially in Downtown.
However, these LACAN "poverty pimps" are way in the wrong and they know it. Give the Cecil its alcohol license! There's no reason for a denial.
nirad on January 28, 2009, at 03:01PM – #3
What is the goal of LACAN? Don't restaurants provide the kind of jobs that employ people who are trying to escape poverty? You don't hear residents in the neighboring loft buildings complain about the noise of new restaurants and bars.
I live at Pacific Electric, and Cole's & The Association can sometimes be loud on weekend nights. But it's not a big deal to us and we'd much rather have them there than have empty store fronts in their place. They are convenient and yummy, and having more foot traffic increases neighborhood safety.
Bert Green on January 29, 2009, at 12:38AM – #4
Main Street was MUCH louder at night before the police cracked down on the drug trade. LA CAN opposed that crackdown.
In the years since LA CAN has been around, they have done very little to INCREASE affordable housing construction and rehab. They spend much of their time and effort suing landlords and working to impose legal restrictions on the use of buildings, which actually increases the cost of providing affordable housing.
I am sure they don't see it that way, and I actually understand their point of view as the defenders of those who have the least power, but I think many of their actions are counterproductive.
Tommy Pedrini on January 29, 2009, at 04:03PM – #5
Totally obscene - seeking to punish entrepreneurship and investment in a neighborhood that needs it is not homeless advocacy. LACAN has come to resemble the many classist NIMBYs they claim to despise.
Russell Brown on January 29, 2009, at 10:45PM – #6
This new late neighborhood option will help connect the hubs of 4th and Main and 6th and Main. Add in the 2 new residential buildings at 8th and Main/ Spring with adjacent Fashion District restaurants, and more connections start to be in place.
The proposed beer and wine license at Tuck will allow sales only in the restaurant as part of the food service, no room service of alcohol is allowed.
The original application did include a request for full liquor license with a separate second floor lounge. After consultation with the community, LAPD, the neighborhood council and other community stakeholders, the application was changed and appropriate conditions were negotiated.
Tuck will be offering breakfast, lunch, dinner and late night dining options for local residents and those who may be visiting the nearby bars and clubs. The facility should enhance the livability, and safety of the neighborhood. No longer will the late night drug dealers control the area.
Residents live directly Pete's Cafe, and as long as there is no outdoor amplified noise and appropriate security, the neighborhood is much safer.
LACAN and UCEFF were the 2 groups expressing concern over the restaurant. These same groups have had similar issues of every liquor application on Main Street and have been involved with concerns of restaurants as far away as LA LIVE. The application for The Association and for every license in the Santa Fe building were slowed for 2 years working through these same issues.
Fred Cordova on January 30, 2009, at 09:27AM – #7
I am also a big supporter of providing affordable housing and have provided Ms Perry with ideas that would accelerate the development of affordable housing without government funding. I also happen to be one of the owners of the Cecil. Since our ownership the number of deaths at the Cecil from drugs overdoses and related matters, which were about 20 a year, have decreased to almost zero. On Tuesday the paper reported a significant drop in "skid row" (I hate that moniker) deaths. Much is related to our cleaning up the Cecil. LACAN, has done nothing to increase the amount of affordable housing and has only increased the cost of improving this community and certainly made it more problematic for owners and stakeholders. Their participation in the lawsuit is without merit.
Jim Winstead on January 30, 2009, at 09:38AM – #8
that's funny -- another developer who has acquired some affordable housing properties in the last couple of years was just making the same deaths-are-down case to me the other day.
i hope that 2009 is the year in which these new developers and the older skid row-based organizations can learn to build on their areas of agreement, and agree to disagree (and keep each other honest) elsewhere.
Scott Mercer on January 31, 2009, at 09:35AM – #9
An active, economically activated Downtown is much better for everyone than a dilapidated area with empty storefronts and abandoned office buildings. In this case,the cliche rings true: a rising tide lifts all boats.
Here's hoping the Cecil will employ local low-income residents in the Tuck restaurant as servers, bus people, cooks, etc.
I wish I was able to attend the hearing but I was out of town. I will submit my support for the beer and wine license in written form.
davey on February 02, 2009, at 12:39AM – #10
LACAN and UCEFF need to stop their agenda and let the new people who live, work and pay taxes downtown have a say. It has been a bitter, cold 20 + years of a barren Main St. Things are changing now, and for the better. Stop trying to put the brakes on progress. Downtown is getting better -- get used to it or move.
Caryn Ho on February 05, 2009, at 09:37AM – #11
I didn't see any mention of the new residential building that just opened up across the street at 7th and Main - SB Lofts with 220 units. I myself will be moving in on Feb. 14th and was so pleased to see what appeared to be a new restaurant opening up across the street - TUCK. It was also nice to see how the neighborhood was moving south from 6th and main where there is Cole's, Pussy and Pooch and a lot of activity. I look forward to seeing more of that extend down to my corner.