NEWPORT BEACH : Car Dealer’s Diner to Change Clientele

Lee West, the besieged purveyor of exotic cars and mainstream hamburgers at his auto dealership, will keep the Jaguar Diner open to his employees after the Newport Beach City Council ordered him to close the cafe to the public.

“He will operate the diner for employees,” West’s lawyer, Richard Dear, said Tuesday. “We will try to get the paper work together to move forward to meet all city conditions for a full-scale restaurant. We want to be a good citizen. His livelihood is there.”

Late Monday night, the City Council listened to protests by West’s opponents for more than an hour and voted to close the diner at Newport Imports on West Coast Highway until West could show that he meets all land-use requirements.

West’s diner was brought to the council’s attention by Dr. Jan Vandersloot of Newport Beach, who had appealed the Planning Commission’s approval of the Jaguar Diner more than six weeks ago.

Vandersloot, who did not expect to prevail, wanted the restaurant closed because city-required studies and West’s own research to assess the cafe’s impact on traffic were inadequate. He contended that West also put the cart before the horse by building the cafe first and getting city approval second.

When West submitted plans for a new dealership two years ago, the city approved it along with a cafeteria for his employees. Shortly thereafter, West said he changed his mind about the cafeteria and installed a diner for customers.

Word soon leaked out, and the city said no go, citing a lack of parking and increased traffic around the dealership. Nevertheless, West opened the diner without proper permits in May. The city sued but never pursued the case.

Meanwhile, West commissioned his own traffic study, which turned out to be favorable to his side. He said he also bought property next door to the dealership to make room for parking--all of which has brought him into compliance with the Municipal Code.

Dear said Tuesday that West had received permission from the city to operate his cafe for employees when the dealership opened. Now, he said, it is just a matter of showing the council that West has bought property next door to Newport Imports to provide the required parking.

But, Dear said, no one has been assigned to check for employees at the door of the diner.

“If a customer came in and said, ‘Can I get a cup of coffee?,’ I don’t know what would happen.”