HUNTINGTON BEACH : 2 Restaurants Told to Mend Their Ways

After repeated complaints from residents, the city has given the owners of two restaurants six weeks to satisfy concerns of the Planning Commission or face losing their permits to hold live entertainment.

Commission members this week scheduled a hearing on May 19 to consider suspending or extending the conditional use permits held by the Crazy Burro and Sakura restaurants.

The restaurants at Beach Boulevard and Adams Street feature nightly live music and dancing, a key portion of their business, owners say. But that feature irks many residents living behind the businesses in the ritzy Seabridge condominium complex.

For about a year, the neighbors have complained that late-night patrons from the restaurants frequently fight in the parking lot and blare their car stereos. They also say that the music from the restaurants often can be heard by residents.

The commission last September ordered the owners to take specific steps to curb the disturbances or lose permission to feature live music.

According to city staff members, Crazy Burro and Sakura have failed since then to have an adequate security guard on duty to monitor the parking lot, have not offered valet parking and have operated later than their permits allow. They also say that Sakura does not keep its doors and windows shut, which allows music to be heard nearby.

Since September, police have received 19 calls about Crazy Burro and 14 about Sakura.

Thirteen Seabridge residents recently signed a letter charging that noise problems still exist, and many of them also have complained by phone to city staff members.

But owners of the adjacent restaurants contend that many of the lingering complaints stem from misunderstandings, not negligence.

The violation of the established hours occurred because police and city planners each had different time restrictions, owners said. City officials acknowledged that the time restrictions do not match, but said that the more restrictive hours should apply.

LeRoy Stone, who along with his wife, Sherida, owns the Crazy Burro, says the two are still paying the price for problems that plagued the restaurants when previous owners were in charge. Some critics of the establishment agree that the situation has improved under the Stones’ management.

“I am sensitive to the neighbors’ rights,” LeRoy Stone said. “I think many of these complaints may be because of the reputation of the old Crazy Burro. But we have made an effort to be sensitive to their needs.”

Stone noted that when residents complained about the restaurant’s trash not being dumped properly, he corrected the problem the next day.

Gang Xu, owner of Sakura, said that only one of the police calls to his restaurant was a noise complaint.

Xu said he does not book loud bands and that the performers quit each night by 11:30.

Some Planning Commission members agreed that the owners have made efforts to appease the nearby residents. But commission member Kirk Kirkland argued otherwise.

“These problems must exist, otherwise I doubt that we’d have the extent of the complaints we have had,” he said. “I think this is a cumulative effect of disregard for your neighbors.”