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# Another eatery, less parking
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/another-eatery-less-parking/
- Published: 2008-04-07T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T19:09:42.000Z
- Author: Bill Bauer
- Tags: Opinion, Downtown, #archive-import

*MORE OR LESS CARS. WHICH IS IT?*

Wednesday evening, the Planning Commission will consider granting a conditional use permit for beer and wine service and a parking variance for Corso Italia, a 113 seat full service, sit-down restaurant at 606 Broadway. This site is under construction and even though it’s a totally new building, it apparently doesn’t have enough on-premises parking as required by code. The code says the eatery must have 30 on-site parking spaces yet it has only 13 spaces.

Although the staff report for this item says La Botte at 620 Santa Monica Blvd. (with the same owner as Corso Italia) had no complaints on record, two complaints were filed against La Botte in the last couple years, both about its insufficient on-site parking.

A similar lack of on-site parking at Juliano’s Raw, 609 Broadway, was the subject of a couple of my columns in 2006\. The granting of on-site parking variances for one Downtown restaurant after another does nothing but exacerbate a critical shortage of street parking and moves us closer to the “Manhattanization of Santa Monica."

John McColgan seemed confused in a letter to the editor (April 2, Page 4) because, last Monday I criticized the “grow smart” proposal to make streets smaller (to accommodate less cars) while castigating Governor Schwarzenegger for wanting to build a tollway to accommodate more cars.”

I only suggested we not reduce street vehicular capacity here and make our traffic even more intolerable. I’d normally support a new tollroad to accomplish reducing congestion such as in Northern San Diego County where remedies are desperately needed — but not through a beach front state park. So, No contradiction, John, but glad you asked.

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 7, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/040708.pdf?ref=smdp.com)