The hits keep coming for the embattled attempts for Sala Thai to open a restaurant in the restored historic Civic Arts Building…

Hercules waterfront rezoning has many scratching their heads
By Tom Lochner

A restaurant plan for Hercules’ historic Civic Arts building is off Monday’s Planning Commission agenda while the city staff ponders the intent of an initiative that rezoned the building to allow a restaurant.

The rezoning caught many people, including the planning staff, by surprise and upset neighbors.

The Waterfront Now Initiative, authored by developer AndersonPacific and approved by the City Council on July 22, provides for more than 1,200 homes, offices, stores and a multimodal transit center.

Two weeks earlier, on July 7, the Planning Commission turned down an application for a restaurant, Sala Thai, at the Civic Arts building, after residents of the adjacent Hercules Historic Homes argued that the noise, light, smells and traffic of a restaurant would spoil the peace and quiet of their neighborhood. The applicant appealed the decision to the City Council.

The Civic Arts Building at the time was just outside the Waterfront District, but the initiative added a loop to the district boundary to incorporate the building.

When the council took up Sala Thai’s appeal Sept. 9, it sent the matter back to the Planning Commission for reconsideration under the new zoning rules, which require only a business license and apparently no Planning Commission review for a restaurant to open.

But City Attorney Mick Cabral has said that elements of the initiative could be a matter of interpretation.

Historic Homes residents said they were blindsided by the rezoning, which they contend was buried in the language of the initiative. And Planning Manager Dennis Tagashira said he did not receive a copy of the initiative until after the council approved it.

Tom Koch, a consultant for AndersonPacific, said the city and the developer had discussed “doing a comprehensive plan” but apparently had not specifically discussed the Sala Thai building.

“City staff is in the process of clarifying with the authors of the Waterfront Now Initiative on the intent of their initiative,” Tagashira said last week. “These clarifications are under way, but have not been completed.”

No new hearing date has been set for the Sala Thai matter.

Glen Cole, an engineer who represents Sala Thai applicant Kay Sala, said last month that he and Sala would go before the commission even though the new rules probably did not require her to.

He said he has “scientific proof” that the restaurant will not adversely impact the neighborhood but that he did not get a chance to show the council Sept. 9 before it sent the matter back to the Planning Commission.

The present flap has antecedents that go back more than a year. In June 2007, Sala wanted to rent a city-controlled space at Sycamore and Railroad avenues but balked at the city’s $3.75-per-square-foot-per-month asking rent. The city later agreed to rent the space to the Powder Keg restaurant.

Three months ago, the city and Powder Keg were discussing a starting rent of “just over $2 per square foot” with annual escalations, City Manager Nelson Oliva said. The city came down in the rent after the area proved to be a hard sell to restaurateurs, Oliva said, and by that time, Sala had walked away.

In fall 2007, the city hired Hercules broker Michael Penner for up to $10,000 in commission to find a tenant for the Civic Arts building.

Sala said she came upon the Civic Arts building by happenstance while on a walk through the area, when she saw Penner’s advertising sign on the property.

On Feb. 21, Sala Thai signed a tentative lease with the agency for the Civic Arts building at $1.65 a square foot a month, Oliva said.