Brewery wants to keep on dancing

The Ocean Avenue Brewery is fighting for its right to party.

When owner Jonathan Thomas was notified by the Laguna Beach Planning Commission that the brewery’s nightly dancing and music was in violation of the establishment’s use permits, he jumped into action.

Thomas admits his dining spot has been operating outside the scope of its 1996 Conditional Use Permit, but said in 13 years no one has complained.

He has hired the Marshall Ininns Design Group to submit an application to amend the restaurant’s existing CUP and resolve the permit issues once and for all.

The establishment moves tables and chairs out of the way most nights to accommodate DJs or bands and dancing.

The 1996 permits allow for only non-amplified live music. Thomas said that while it is a violation of the permit, the restaurant has been operating the same for 13 years — with minimal complaints.

“From the very beginning we’ve had DJs and live music,” Thomas said. “I honestly didn’t realize that people dancing would be an issue.”

The Downtown Specific Plan designates Ocean Avenue for resident-serving businesses, and a petition has been organized in an effort to show the Brewery has local support. About 2,000 signatures have been collected including written and online signatures, Thomas said. About 1,500 of them are from Lagunans.

The walls of the restaurant are adorned with works from local artists, and the company hosts events for local groups like the Surfrider Foundation.

“We’re trying to get as much support from the locals as possible. Hopefully they’ll look at that and say we’re doing something good for the city,” Thomas said.

Planning Commissioner Anne Johnson said the commission’s issue isn’t so much about the music and dancing as it is staying within the boundaries of the permits.

“We have to make sure when we issue [Conditional Use Permits], the people [to whom] we issue them remain in compliance,” Johnson said.

Johnson said the city has received complaints from downtown residents alleging noise and excessive drunkenness from the restaurant.

Thomas hopes the solution will be to update the permits. The amended CUP would allow for amplified music, a band of up to four, and a 14-foot dance floor.

The application also proposes to designate a staff member to monitor noise levels with an electronic decibel reader outside the restaurant. Staff inside could turn the music down if it registered too loud.

Thomas said the Ocean Avenue Brewery is comparable to surrounding businesses like Hennessey’s Tavern and The Marine Room, both of which have regular live entertainment.

The application will be reviewed at the Planning Commission’s Jan. 9 meeting.

Johnson said there’s no way to tell which way the commission will go on the application or what kind of restrictions they may put on the restaurant until the staff report has been reviewed.

She did say the council will want to weigh what they want the character of Ocean Avenue to be.

“We don’t want the Irvine Spectrum, teeny boppers coming down to party,” Johnson said. “We want to think about and consider what kind of culture we want to promote downtown on Ocean Avenue.”

For more information on the petition, visit www.oceanbrewing.com.