Showdown Over Pacific Grove Parklets Coming This Week

December 20, 2022 – It’s easy to get lost amid the 86 pages of the recent Pacific Grove planning commission subcommittee report on parklets. 

Think of it as a thick wine list—a lot of information to sift through, some parts drier, others sweeter, others more intense—yet so vast it helps to have a guide to help simplify and spotlight things. 

This update, then, can serve as your sommelier for the ongoing and often spicy debate over the use of sidewalks and parking spaces for outdoor dining in P.G., which reaches a major crossroads tomorrow night, Dec. 21.

The three key takeaways are these: 

1. On the surface, the subcommittee doesn’t seem to be digging the parklets at all, citing concerns over traffic, access, maintenance, compliance, and “health and safety concerns.” 

If its suggestions were adopted, each parklet would be taken down, at least temporarily. 

Many would be permitted to rebuild at much smaller scale, but five—including Happy Girl Kitchen, Victorian Corner, La Mia Cucina, Vivolo’s and Il Vecchio—would be permanently gone.

2. There’s been a lot of pearl-clutching and brinkmanship from various sides of the debate over whether parklets are blasphemy or blessing. (If this then-versus-now story sounds familiar, welcome back to Pacific Grove.)

Subcommittee member and P.G. real estate broker Debby Beck, in an open letter to the City Council, wrote, “We can do better as a community.” (She did write that before doing extensive research for the committee—more on that in a minute.)

Multiple restaurant owners say parklet removal would be catastrophic. In her own eight-page analysis of the parklet report, Wild Fish co-owner Liz Jacobs says if her parklet goes away, she’ll have to lay off half her work force.

“Economically, it makes no sense,” she says. “The rationale given by the subcommittee is that they want to make the city safer. This is not supported with any data.”

3. Pacific Grove city staff calmly looked at the subcommittee recommendations to the City Council and addressed each of their concerns succinctly. 

Two quick examples: 

a) The fifth of 14 recommendations asks operators who have both sidewalk dining and parklets to choose one or the other. The reply from staff: “A compelling rationale for this recommendation has not been provided, and is not recommended by staff.”

b) Recommendation number seven explores health and safety concerns. The staff reply: “City staff have conducted inspections during construction as well as ongoing reviews, and have not found any health and/or safety issues. Specifics have not been provided by the Planning Commission Subcommittee or the public in this area.”

Come tomorrow’s meeting, Pacific Grove City Council reviews both the subcommittee’s thoughts and city staff response ahead of the end-of-the-year deadline for a new parklet plan.   

City manager Ben Harvey notes that P.G. has a draft parklet manual for anyone who wants to construct one going forward, but doesn’t see a reason to scrap ones that are already built.

“We have a very successful existing parklet program,” he says. “We’ve built it parklet by parklet, each constructed under the supervision of a building official and a city planner. They’re safe, they comply with the law, and they’ve been a huge benefit not only to restaurants but to the city and community.”

He is among those who point to a pickup in restaurant business from neighboring cities. 

“We’re one of the few local cities that have them in place, and they’re booming,” he says. “COVID is still going, and no matter the temperature, people still want to eat outside.”

Harvey is quick to add that it’s ultimately up to the City Council—which per insiders is split on how to proceed. They could adopt a combination of staff and subcommittee recommendations, if so inspired.

More than anything, subcommittee member Beck hopes for robust staff, commission, council and public comment, in person or via Zoom. She understands the vast majority of Pagrovians are behind parklets, and emphasizes repeatedly that she and her fellow subcommittee members are too (and also eat out constantly downtown, where Beck keeps her office). 

“I am favorable to outdoor dining—no one’s trying to do away with it—this process is a collaboration, and it’s not one-sided,” she says. “Everyone has to cool their jets—there’s an opportunity to be more open-minded and not rush to conclusions. 

“Rather than take our report as anecdotal, I hope they might embrace it as research from people who are concerned and want to make [parklets] permanent, with criteria in place.”

The Dec. 21 City Council agenda, Draft Parklet Program Manual and full Parklet Program Subcommittee Report are available at the Pacific Grove City website.