July 10, 2025 #1 Local News, Forum, Information and Event Source for Venice Beach, California.

LA’s Proposed Outdoor Dining Ordinance Causes Outrage Among Restaurant Owners

Proposal could leave restaurants with thousands of dollars in losses from wading through the city’s paperwork

By Dolores Quintana 

After three years of the pandemic, restaurants are still struggling to deal with the ever-changing economic challenges and stay afloat in troubled times. The Los Angeles City Council is clearly starting to rethink the special rules that gave businesses some help during the toughest times. They are thinking more about “getting back to normal” than trying to find innovative ways to work with local restaurants. 

The Al Fresco Program is a successful and popular program where restaurants were allowed to build parklets in the open air outside of their normal restaurant space to bring more customers to dine in rather than use take-out options which could increase their profits. Open air is considered a safer place to avoid Covid infection so the logic is that open-air dining could bring customers back and it worked. However, now that most Covid assistance programs are winding down whether or not the pandemic is truly over, businesses will have to deal with changes to those programs that have been a godsend to them for years. 

The Los Angeles City Council is now considering an ordinance that would roll back the special conditions related to the construction of parklets for open-air dining as reported by The Robb Report. Restaurant owners with outdoor dining areas or parklets would be obligated to obtain permits and licensing that they have not previously been required to do during the pandemic and adhere to new restrictions and be subject to building codes and restrictions on operating hours. 

We spoke to a representative from Teddy’s Red Tacos in Venice and their representative said, “They won’t affect our business, but it will affect how much we pay for it in permits and unnecessary fees that we didn’t have before. We’re still recovering from the pandemic, right,? Three years of damage, we don’t know when it ends. They haven’t given us any grace or mercy. It’s extremely disappointing, considering restaurants usually have a hard time. They don’t even give us any recovery time or any way to help us recover. We thought this was a nice gesture that they gave us with the Al Fresco program and now they want to tax it with payments and permits.”

The representative added, “Maybe they need to put an effort to show that they want to keep restaurants open or make it easier for restaurants to make money year-round. Where they all come around in summer and say, oh, it’s summer, you kind of busy you are. It’s not every day that you do well. What am I supposed to do? Send my crew home and have them cut hours?”

Related Posts

Promenade Restaurant Introduces Lunch Menu Set at $18 Per Person

July 10, 2025

July 10, 2025

The fixed $18 price point targets commuters and those seeking a power lunch or a change of scenery The restaurant...

Metro Reports Crime Drop, Higher Rider Satisfaction, and Progress on Major Projects

July 9, 2025

July 9, 2025

The Authority said the drop in violent incidents—down to the lowest level since May 2019—coincided with more uniformed personnel and...

Venice Pier to Host Block Party and Beach Cleanup This Saturday

July 9, 2025

July 9, 2025

The event will feature a beach cleanup, live music by The Brobots, face painting, balloon animals, and local vendors The...

New Greek-Inspired Rooftop Opens in Venice: REPORT

July 9, 2025

July 9, 2025

Diners can expect hand-pulled flatbread with za’atar, salmon crudo with spicy aioli, and more A new rooftop restaurant offering a...

Santa Monica Council Votes in Support of Park-Centric Future at Airport Site

July 9, 2025

July 9, 2025

The decision followed a contentious meeting with over 140 public speakers and more than 1,000 emails received by the council...

Virtual Town Hall to Discuss Proposed Resilient Rebuilding Authority

July 9, 2025

July 9, 2025

The agency, to be run by political appointees, would manage permitting, development, zoning, and funding, modeled after post-disaster recoveries Los...

Puma and Venice Basketball League Launch 20th Anniversary Sneaker

July 8, 2025

July 8, 2025

A joint Instagram post’s caption describes the sneaker as embodying “20 years of blood, sweat, and tears,” built for those...

‘Adoptapalooza’ Pet Adoption Festival Returns to Main Street This Weekend

July 8, 2025

July 8, 2025

The free, family-friendly event aims to connect adoptable animals with new owners Green Dog Dental & Veterinary Center will host...

Anti-Drunk Driving Resolution Introduced as City Council Honors Late Palisades Teen Killed in Crash

July 8, 2025

July 8, 2025

Levi, who was set to attend the University of Virginia this fall, was killed by a drunk driver on May...

Shore Hotel: A Local Destination for Summer Fun

July 8, 2025

July 8, 2025

Bring on all things summer. Walking or biking along Santa Monica Pier, you might find yourself taking a pause at...

Soprano Golda Zahra Returns to BroadStage For a One-Night-Only Musical Celebration

July 7, 2025

July 7, 2025

Hailed as “the rising star of the opera world” by The Hollywood Times, internationally acclaimed soprano Golda Zahra makes her much-anticipated return to BroadStage in...

Over 40 Pounds of Waste Cleared from Venice Beach after Local Groups Organize Cleanup

July 7, 2025

July 7, 2025

The initiative aims to inspire residents to adopt small, meaningful changes, such as avoiding single-use plastics The LA Galaxy, in...

Venice Shorts: Encampments Return to Rose & Third

July 7, 2025

July 7, 2025

It’s a Never-Ending Battle to Prevent Encampments From Returning BY NICK ANTONICELLO  Images provided by residents this weekend show an...

Transform Your Life: The Free Virtual ONENESS GLOBAL SUMMIT Debuts July 18-20, 2025

July 7, 2025

July 7, 2025

The ONENESS GLOBAL SUMMIT, a transformative three-day virtual event, is coming, July 18-20, 2025, offering participants worldwide a free opportunity...

New SaMo Bridge Program Refers 56 People in First Month; 37 Connected to Services

July 7, 2025

July 7, 2025

According to city officials, the program is on pace to meet its goal of serving 260 individuals annually Santa Monica’s...