Commission approves move for Shirley’s Bagels, finds plaza parking will be OK

After months of anxiously awaiting a decision from the Laguna Beach Planning Commission, Shirley’s Bagels was told Wednesday that it could move to a larger spot in the same plaza.

The problem hinged on the city’s parking rules, which require a certain number of vehicle spaces depending on the square footage of a business and other factors. In this case, planners accepted a consultant’s study of the parking needs for the entire plaza and determined that overall parking would suffice.

Shirley’s, based in Costa Mesa, has been in Laguna for more than 20 years and currently occupies a 590-square-foot space in The Plaza, a two-story shopping center at 303 Broadway St. With the commission’s action, it now can move into the 931-square-foot space in the same center formerly occupied by Casey’s Cupcakes, which left in February.

Casey’s operated as a retail store, which meant it could provide fewer parking spaces than Shirley’s, which city staff considers a food-service business.

As such, Shirley’s needs to provide one parking space for every 100 square feet of gross floor area, or one spot for every three seats, whichever ratio provides the greater number of parking spaces, according to the municipal code. Retail stores require one parking space for every 250 square feet of gross floor area.

The burden on businesses to provide additional parking spaces in a city where every spot is coveted calls for changes to current parking codes, Commissioner Norm Grossman said.

“This reinforces the insanity of parking in downtown,” Grossman said. “[Shirley’s] was held up for six months ... to the average person this makes no sense.”

Shirley’s paid parking consultant LSA Associates to study each plaza tenant’s hours of operation. The group determined that because the businesses were open at different times, Shirley’s would have sufficient parking during its hours of operation, 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.

The new digs will have windows facing Ocean Avenue and 20 inside seats but no outdoor seating, the staff report says.

Carlos Perez, a Shirley’s partner, was clearly pleased with the commission’s unanimous vote.

“I’m happy after all this waiting and planning,” Perez said. “We want to bring to Ocean Avenue a beautiful restaurant the community can be proud of.”