Black Bull to keep permit

The city and the Black Bull Chop House are in the final stages of a settlement that cancels the revocation of the restaurant’s entertainment permit, according to city officials.

Black Bull’s entertainment permit was revoked by the police department last fall, but the department said the chop house was allowed to operate normally while the final revocation decision was made.

The restaurant’s owner, Cesar Pena, has spent the past several months negotiating with the city and the police department, city Senior Planner Rami Talleh said last year.

Under the terms of the settlement agreement, the restaurant will be been given a “four strikes” provision as part of its last-chance conditional entertainment permit.

After the entertainment permit is violated four times, it will be revoked, with no option for appeal, the city said.

“All the parties have agreed in concept to the settlement agreement; however the agreement is not final until the documents are signed by the police department and business owner,” Talleh said.

A study session to determine whether the restaurant’s Conditional Use Permit and Entitlement Plan Amendment will be revoked will be during Tuesday’s Planning Commission meeting, according to a staff report released this Tuesday.

The public will be able to comment on the restaurant at the commission’s Feb. 24 meeting.

The popular steakhouse and bar, which boasts a mechanical bull, has been the subject of dozens of police calls since its opening last spring, ranging from public drunkenness to assault with a deadly weapon to a potential rape.

Other permit violations included overcrowding issues and bouncers who weren’t properly identified.

The permit to be discussed Tuesday determines whether several aspects of the restaurant’s operation — like its alcohol license, music and dance offerings, and even its famed mechanical bull — will be permitted.

Police Chief Ken Small said in a letter to the commission last year that the restaurant has become better known for its nightclub-style atmosphere at night, rather than the family-style environment it originally promised.