Family theme will be the name of the game at pier
By SHRADDHA R. JAISWAL Special to the Daily Press
SM PIER — The pier’s slow simmering revitalization projects are finally set to boil as two new restaurants promise to infuse new life into Santa Monica’s historic attraction.
For years, buildings that were once bustling restaurants have stood vacant on the Santa Monica Pier. And as a result, it has meant lost rent for City Hall, fewer options for visitors and lost sales tax revenue.
But that’s all about to change. Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. is moving closer to demolishing the old Boathouse restaurant on the north side of the pier. Across the way, plans are underway to open a new restaurant where at least two other establishments have recently failed.
City Hall expects to bring in hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional revenue if both restaurant locations are occupied.
The building previously home to the Ashgrove and Arcadia nightclubs, which has been empty for at least four years, could be occupied by a vintage family style restaurant.
Representatives of the Old Pier Inn said they believe their business model will work because it’s geared toward families and is solely a restaurant as opposed to a nightclub.
It’s unknown when the restaurant will open — lease negotiations between the restaurant’s representatives and the Pier Restoration Corp. are ongoing. The PRC is a nonprofit organization funded partially by the city to manage and operate the pier.
“It’ll be family oriented,” said Josh Needle, attorney for the Old Pier Inn. “Our design concept is based on traditional craftsman architecture because that’s part of Santa Monica history. We expect to cover our walls inside with vintage photographs of the pier and of Santa Monica.”
With menu items like rotisserie chicken, ribs and a large salad bar, restaurant officials are hoping to help make the pier a place to eat for the 3 million people who visit each year. “(Businesses on the pier) are looking forward to it, and we’re looking forward to working with all of the tenants and all the other restaurants to make the pier a place where people come to eat,” Needle said. “We think the pier has a great future.”
Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. is banking on that future.
After almost five years of jumping through necessary hoops to secure permits and entitlements, the Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.’s 15th U.S. location will open next summer on the site of the pier’s old Boathouse restaurant. The new dining place will offer its patrons a view of the ocean and sandy beaches of Santa Monica, as well as every kind of shrimp imaginable.
“We always hope that (the restaurants) will be a positive addition that will not only enhance visitors’ experience, but also the experience of businesses on the pier,” said Ben Franz-Knight, executive director of the PRC.
The young restaurant chain, inspired by the 1994 movie “Forrest Gump,” will have its new location just below the pier ramp. The family oriented 9,000-square-foot restaurant and bar will feature two floors of outdoor seating and 314 indoor seats with great views, officials said.
“It’s a wonderful place for the Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.,” said Howard Laks, architect for the Santa Monica Bubba Gump and for the pier’s Lobster restaurant.
“I think it’s going to be good for the local economy, and I do feel that a new restaurant is going to activate activity on the Santa Monica Pier.”
Although a definite start date for the demolition of the 50-year-old Boathouse has not been slated, Laks expects construction to start some time near Labor Day weekend. City Hall and the restaurant’s officials have created plans to avoid negatively affecting the other businesses on the pier, which hasn’t seen any new commercial construction in eight years.
“Both restaurants are more casual, family dining restaurants with a theme that is really reminiscent of the historic pleasure pier,” said Elana Buegoff, senior administrative analyst for the city. “I think that most concepts are really in keeping with the pier spirit, and they will absolutely benefit the community and other tenants on the pier.”
Bubba Gump is expected to pay City Hall $10,417 in base rent a month, plus $1,889 annually for common maintenance. Also, the city will receive 2.5 percent of the restaurant’s food, beverage and retail gross sales. If sales in Santa Monica are anything like they are in Bubba Gump’s Monterey or San Francisco locations, City Hall can expect a cut of restaurant sales anywhere from $6.5 million to $7.5 million, or more.
Officials also expect the new projects to attract more visitors and residents to the pier.
“Bubba’s will actually draw people to the pier who wouldn’t normally come to the pier,” said Linda Sullivan, a PRC board member. “That’s going to be a real plus.”
“Bubba’s will actually draw people to the pier who wouldn’t normally come to the pier. That’s going to be a real plus.” — – LINDA SULLIVAN PRC board member
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 3, 2004. Read the original PDF.