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# Pier pressure: Gump gearing up
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/pier-pressure-gump-gearing-up/
- Published: 2004-03-06T16:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T03:56:06.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Business, Pier, #archive-import

*BUBBA GUMP, from page 1 Something fishy happening on pier*

*By JAMIE WETHERBE Special to the Daily Press*

After months of legal delays, a Santa Monica landmark is expected to finally be demolished next month to make way for the movie-themed chain restaurant Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.

Bubba Gump’s construction on the Santa Monica Pier — expected to cost about $4 million — will likely be underway by mid-April, beginning with the demolition of the 50-year-old Boathouse restaurant, said Howard Laks, the project architect for the restaurant.

The City Council and City Planning Commission have already given Bubba Gump the go ahead, and the restaurant should receive its final building permit in four to six weeks, according to Laks. The restaurant could be open for business early next year.

With a lease good until 2026, Santa Monica seems to have a new landmark.

“The commission is pleased with the design,” City Planner Elizabeth Bar-El said. “(Laks) really followed the pier design guidelines.”

The building’s exterior follows a “California mission- Italianate-style,” said the architect, while the interior will be consistent with the 13 other Bubba Gump restaurants, a spin-off from the 1994 movie “Forrest Gump.”

“They’ll be pictures of Forrest Gump... and artifacts from the movie,” Lax said, with a rough-wood interior to resemble a warehouse.”

Whereas the existing building at 301 Santa Monica Pier occupies about 6,900 square feet, the proposed Bubba Gump will measure close to 9,000 square feet, a feature that slowed city approval due to potential parking and traffic pitfalls.

Alcohol service issues further delayed approval at the planning commission, Bar-El said.

The city initially wanted to limit Bubba Gump’s alcohol sales to 25 percent of its total revenue. Bubba Gump appealed to the City Council for 30 percent and won.

“The main concern is that it was a family-oriented restaurant... dedicated to serving food,” Bar-El said, and not a bar.

The city’s preference for a family restaurant on the pier promoted legal battles with the existing restaurant, and delayed Bubba Gump’s initial plans to open last spring.

The city in 2001 ended its month-to-month lease with the 50-year-old Boathouse because city officials said they feared the restaurant’s motorcycle theme could attract an undesirable clientele.

Boathouse owner, Naia Sheffield, sued the city for breach of contract in an effort to keep the restaurant her grandfather founded, but a U.S. District Court ruled on the city’s behalf.

While officials said Santa Monica has been harmed financially because of Bubba Gump’s delays, the city should be able to recoup its losses after upping rent on the property.

Bubba Gump is expected to pay $10,417 a month — almost double the Boathouse’s rent — plus $1,889 annually for common maintenance and 2.5 percent of the restaurant’s food, beverage and retail gross sales.

While Bubba Gump’s Cajun-inspired menu features a lot of seafood, its fare won’t be fished out of the Santa Monica Pier.

“It’s farm-raised,” said Matt McQueen, a spokesman for Bubba Gump.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/030604-04_02.jpg)

of Howard Laks Associates Architects An artist’s rendering of the proposed Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. (Photo: Photo courtesy)

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on March 6, 2004.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/030604.pdf?ref=smdp.com)