CATEGORICAL EXEMPTION and PLANNING AND LAND USE MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE REPORT relative to a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) appeal filed for the property located at 6253 West Hollywood Boulevard.

The City Council's Planning and Land Use Management (PLUM) Committee has recommended denying an appeal regarding a California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Categorical Exemption for a Class 2 Conditional Use Permit (CUP) at 6253 West Hollywood Boulevard. The CUP, granted to Meco Properties (Walter Schild), allows the continued sale of alcoholic beverages for on-site consumption in an expanded 9,210 square-foot restaurant and comedy/supper club with 434 indoor seats, operating from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. daily.

Appellant's Arguments: Ned Pan, Inc., owner of the adjacent Pantages Theater, appealed the CEQA exemption, arguing the project is a major expansion (a 160% increase in seating from 167 to 434, and a 15% increase in floor area from 8,015 to 9,210 sq ft) and thus doesn't qualify for Class 1 (Existing Facilities) or Class 23 (Normal Operations) exemptions. Key concerns included public safety risks due to a cinder block structure encroaching on a 10-foot emergency exit easement (reducing it to 5 feet) critical for the 2,700-seat Pantages Theater, potential issues with patron queuing on public sidewalks, and increased trash generation. The appellant also contended that the City improperly relied on mitigation measures (like a queuing management plan) to justify the categorical exemption.

Committee Decision: The PLUM Committee, following the Central Los Angeles Area Planning Commission (CLAAPC), voted 3-0 to deny the appeal. The City's findings asserted that the project is exempt under CEQA Class 1 and 23, noting the property's 20+ year history as a restaurant with live entertainment in a prime entertainment district. Regarding the easement, the City found "no nexus" between the private dispute and the alcohol permit, and a site visit revealed a 1-foot grade difference rendering the easement "practically unusable" and "not ADA compliant." Conditions were imposed to address public safety, including requiring a queuing management plan to be submitted to LAPD that considers the Pantages Theater's operations.

This decision allows a significant expansion of a Hollywood restaurant into a 434-seat comedy/supper club with extended hours until 2:00 a.m. Residents and patrons of the adjacent Pantages Theater may experience increased pedestrian activity and potential queuing on sidewalks, as well as ongoing public safety concerns related to a long-standing encroachment on an emergency exit easement, despite the City's imposed conditions for a queuing management plan.

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