1:40pm | Vice Mayor and 2nd District Councilwoman Suja Lowenthal hosted a meeting yesterday at the Rock Bottom Brewery to discuss proposed amendments to the conditions of the Downtown Dining and Entertainment District.
The conditions are a set of rules that the business and property owners must follow in order to legally be allowed to present live entertainment.
Another meeting, targeted more to residents, is scheduled for Monday, July 25, from 7 – 8:30 p.m. at 133 The Promenade. Everyone is welcome.
At Wednesday’s meeting were many Pine Avenue business and property owners, mostly restaurant operators. Some represented businesses from The Pike, which is included in the district.
The proposed changes deal mainly with noise abatement that, it seems, arose from complaints by nearby residents, especially those living on The Promenade across the alley to the east. There were no specifics about the number, frequency or nature of the complaints, however. It wasn’t made clear if one person had been complaining or dozens or if the complaints arose from specific businesses on specific nights.
The solutions to these noise concerns included the complete elimination of amplified music on rooftops and patios. This sparked a lively discussion. Restaurant owners expressed concern that, while they weren’t necessarily interested in having amplified live music on their patios, they had sound systems in place that played amplified background music, which they believed helped to create a positive dining ambience.
It was suggested that they eliminate the restriction on amplification entirely, which is not a cause for residential complaints, and instead rely on the measurement of sound pressure levels, which are. In response, Lowenthal said, “to create a basic set of operating standards that all establishments follow relieves the assignment of resources for me to send out individuals from PD [sic] to monitor this.”
Erik Sund, Business Relations manager for the city of Long Beach, said that with measuring sound pressure levels, “there would be an existing rule that [specifies] it can’t be a certain decible reading from 50 feet away, so there would still be a control [for] the ambient music.” As the conversation progressed, however, he said that “measuring sound is not an easy process for us.”
It should be noted that, under the new conditions, businesses would be allowed to have amplified music on patios and rooftops if they apply for and receive a special event or occasional use permit.
Next up was the new requirement that all doors and windows remain closed when live entertainment is on-going. A strong resistance to this proposal was expected because it would seriously stifle the atmosphere of excitement that comes from an active and dynamic downtown scene.
Asked why they didn’t require the doors to be closed after 10 p.m., Sund admitted that in Belmont Shore businesses with entertainment must close their doors after 10 p.m., but both he and Lowenthal seemed resistant to this same compromise in the Downtown Dining and Entertainment District.
“It is a much easier enforcement just to have the doors closed,” said Sund. “If you’re a resident that’s being disturbed at 2 in the morning because someone had their door open, getting a Health person out there to do a noise reading is a lot more difficult than calling the police and the police saying ‘The doors are open, and they’re supposed to be closed.’ We have to make it a practical enforcement practice.”
The final noise-related amendment restricted businesses from taking trash out of their businesses between the hours of midnight and 7 a.m. Several restaurant owners expressed concern that this might be a health issue for them and their customers.
Not all the proposed amendments were noise -elated. One, requested by Long Beach Police Department Chief Jim McDonnell, would require each business that provides live entertainment to purchase, install and maintain a security system that uses high-resolution night-vision, internet-connected cameras to completely cover front and rear access points and any parking facilities controlled by the businesses. The owners would be required to provide the Police Department with open Internet access to the systems.
Cmdr. John Benedetti of the LBPD’s South Division explained that these systems would be used when police receive calls about crimes in progress, allowing them to tailor an appropriate response and, in some cases, help identify suspects and victims. He also suggested that the systems might act as a deterrent to criminal activity.
Asked if data exists related to the frequency and results of the use of similar systems in Belmont Shore for a year, specifically pertaining to arrests and successful prosecutions, he said he didn’t know if that information is available.
Benedetti had no idea how much the systems would cost, but one business owner said that he’d seen a four-camera system for $1,200. Nobody knew how much it would cost to install, however. Other business owners expressed concern that the systems they’d already invested in would fail to meet the requirements and would need to be replaced.
Editor’s note: The police department currently operates a citywide program in which it partners with businesses that are willing to provide the department direct access to their video surveillance systems. That program, however, is voluntary.
One business owner asked if the fees they pay to the city could be reduced to help offset the cost of the purchase and installation of these systems.
“I’m happy to consider that if you’re willing to pay for every time a police officer comes to your establishment,” Lowenthal said.
The business owner was unhappy with her answer.
“If you add up the resources,” Lowenthal continued, the cost of a police response can “go into the tens of thousands of dollars. You may not like the answer, but that is the answer.”
A complete text of the proposed amendments can be found at LongBeach.gov/District2. Read the existing municipal code that relates to entertainment, including in the Downtown Dining and Entertainment District.
Editor’s note: A previous version of this post incorrectly identified the LBPD’s South Division commander as Joe Stilinovich.