Editorial Editorial (January 28, 2005)

British pub on council's plate Tuesday

Let's hope that longtime Pleasanton resident Mari Kennard finally gets a decision from the City Council on Tuesday over her 18-month-long effort to open a restaurant downtown that would replicate her popular Crown British Pub and Restaurant in downtown Danville. She's been through the permitting and zoning approval process twice at considerable expense. This time, she was all but assured of final approval until a St. Mary Street homeowner in the next block appealed the Planning Commission's approval, asking the council to reverse it. That decision was delayed at the request of Councilman Matt Sullivan, who noted that Mayor Jennifer Hosterman was in Washington, D.C., and wanted the full four-member council to vote on the appeal.

So Kennard, who has made frequent trips to City Hall with various plans and blueprints, will be there again, along with Karl and Brenda Sauter. They're saying that enough's enough. That as businesses, especially bars and restaurants like Kennard wants to open, move off Main Street toward high-priced residential neighborhoods in the downtown district, homeowners suffer the loss of peace and quiet - and even a place to park - and they want it stopped.

For a city that spends tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars to promote Pleasanton, and especially its downtown, here's a dilemma that the council needs to resolve. After a lengthy series of public hearings, planners, the Pleasanton Downtown Association and the council approved a specific plan that encourages downtown retail growth, including along the side streets like St. Mary. If it's unfair to intrude on those who bought their homes near the historic downtown business district, it may also be unfair to force business owners like Kennard to go through costly bureaucratic hoops needlessly. It's not the first time a downtown restaurant has faced irritated residents. A restaurant and bar in the old Train Station building on First Street was forced to close after homeowners across the street persuaded city authorities to require building soundproofing that the restaurant owners said they could not afford. Kennard, herself, narrowly won approval for her plan to open her restaurant in the vacated Coffee Roast Express building at Main and Ray streets. In September 2003, Planning Commissioners Brian Arkin and Matt Sullivan voted against her proposal, arguing that they couldn't approve an establishment that would serve alcoholic beverages until 10 p.m. so close to homes on Ray Street. Although Kennard prevailed in a 3-2 vote, her tentative lease was cancelled by Ed and Diana Churka, owners of the coffeehouse, who grew tired of waiting and leased the space to another applicant.

Kennard wants to open her new restaurant in what is now a boarded-up building at 336 St. Mary St. Once home to the local Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the building, constructed in 1888, is being restored by its owner Robert Byrd for offices on the second floor and Kennard's restaurant, to be called, appropriately, the Odd Fellows. If Kennard wasn't so determined to bring her menu of Bangers and Mash and pints of beer to downtown Pleasanton, she might long ago have taken her bid to Dublin and been open long ago. Hopefully, her long wait will end Tuesday when the City Council will decide if she can open a restaurant in her own hometown.

E-mail a friend a link to this story.