Chicken chain ruffles residents’ feathers

A new restaurant beats a gun shop when it comes to what kind of

business should be housed in a Magnolia Boulevard property, the

property’s owner said Tuesday, appealing to the City Council to allow

a California Chicken Cafe to open.

But by press time, the council had not made a decision, instead

listening to owners and residents in the area, many who are opposed

to the project because of lack of parking. They argue that there were

enough restaurants already on that stretch of Magnolia Boulevard.

At stake on Tuesday was a reversal of a Planning Board decision,

recommending approval of the restaurant.

But Bill Belshay, who owns the building with his wife, Leni, said

he had turned down other possible tenants because the city preferred

a restaurant at that site.

“They are the best bet for the property,” Bill Belshay said. “I

wonder how many other restaurants, if this is turned down, will be

interested in that location, or Magnolia Park in general.”

Belshay said a deli backed out, that he turned down a gun shop,

and expressions of interest from a post-production company and a drug

and alcohol rehabilitation center never panned out.

Albert Epstein, owner of storefront property on Magnolia, opposed

the restaurant.

“If this tenant moves in there and starts up business, and two

years later causes irreparable harm to the neighborhood, the damage

will have been done regardless of whether there are restrictions from

the Planning Board,” Epstein said.

California Chicken Cafe Owner Andre de Montesquiou was seeking a

conditional-use permit to open the 4,700-square-foot restaurant at

2921 Magnolia Blvd.

He spent about 18 months looking for a site in the city for a new

restaurant and liked Magnolia Boulevard because it was a good

location with a residential base, de Montesquiou said.

If there is any effect on residential streets from his business it

would be for a 60- to 90-minute period during the lunch rush, de

Montesquiou said, and there is the option of creating permit parking

or one-hour parking if problems persisted.

“There are parking scenarios that could be implemented to protect

their rights,” de Montesquiou said.

Niagara Street resident Penny Church said the proposed restaurant

did not match with the neighborhood, because of the heavy traffic, a

high-turnover restaurant would create. “We would love to have

California Chicken Cafe come to Burbank,” Church said. “But when

you’re talking about Magnolia Park and residential zoning adjacent,

you have to be more considerate of the type of business coming in.”

The Planning Board recommended on Aug. 22 that the City Council

approve the conditional use permit and a parking variance despite

staff members saying there was not enough parking for the restaurant.

Planning department staff members recommended to the council that

the appeal on the conditional use permit and variance be granted.

Later, it became known that Bill Humfreville, the brother of

Planning Board Vice Chairman Dan Humfreville, is a manager of

California Chicken Cafe locations in Santa Monica and Westwood.

Dan Humfreville never disclosed his brother’s connection with the

company although he had consulted with the City Attorney’s Office

prior to the Planning Board discussing and voting on the permit.

Since Bill Humfreville did not have any financial interest in the

Burbank locations, it was not necessary for Dan Humfreville to recuse

himself from the discussion or disclose his brother’s connections,

city officials said.

The City Council directed the City Attorney’s Office to review the

matter and report back at a future meeting.

* MARK MADLER covers City Hall and the courts. He may be reached

at (818) 637-3242 or by e-mail at mark.madlerlatimes.com.